Falling for Black
by Dream-Like-State
Summary: Azura Lovegood, good friend of LilyEvans and sworn enemy of the Marauders. Join her in her 7th year, as she deals with love, saving her friends, sadness and pranks... Chaos is sure to make an appearance. TEMPORARILY ON HOLD - AGAIN.
1. Trains and Blushes

Falling for Black.

"AZURA JANE LOVEGOOD!"

Oh soggy cornflakes. Curse this world.

"What?!" I yell back at my supposed best friend.

"Wait for me!"

"Hurry up then." I tell her. She's running towards me now, arms flailing.

When she reaches me, she's panting and we step onto the train.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, you?" I reply shortly.

"Oh nothing, as usual. Have you seen Lil?"

"She'll no doubt be in the compartment."

We make our way to said compartment and enter.

Bad idea.

"JAMES POTTER! WILL YOU FUCK OFF?!" She's screaming at him.

Sigh. As usual.

"But Lillykins…" He whines back.

"JAMES! STOP ASKING ME OUT! I WILL NOT GO OUT WITH YOU!"

"Come on Lily, please?"

"NO! NOW GET OUT!"

Her face was plastered with rage and she was heaving, as if about to blow up. Oh, joy.

Serious Black sat in the corner nearly pissing himself laughing, while Reumus sat back, waiting for it to finally be over. Peter was cowering behind his hand. Wimp.

This was practically tradition. James Potter would come and annoy Lily Evans, Lily would yell and scream, James and company would leave, and finally peace would come again… Until we got to school.

Then the cursed Marauders would once again start with their pranks and James, also known as Prongs, would keep asking Lily out.

Sigh. Another long year.

"James, will you please just leave?" I ask sweetly.

"Oh hey Azura." Finally, you realise I'm here! Geeze, you bloody TOERAG!

"Azura, my you are looking the most beautiful thing today." Black bats his stupid eyelashes. I just wanna rip them out.

"Really Black, do you think your flattery will 'win me over'?" I say sarcastically.

Bloody Black. Well at least, with the way he's going, he will be.

"LEAVE!" Lily yells.

James follows Reumus out of the door, tagged by Peter. Black lingers a moment.

"What do you say, babe, you and me, tonight, the astronomy tower?"

"Sorry Black, I've got better things to do."

"Fine, just a quickie in the room of requirements?"

"Don't count on it, Black." I tell him.

"C'mon babe, everyone needs a little fun every now and then. Even you."

"I swear, Sirius Black, if you keep calling me babe, you will soon know what it is to be a FREAKING UNIC!" That scared him.

He backs out the door. "Okay, I'm leaving now. No need to yell."

He closes the door, but I still manage to catch him asking James what a unic is.

I cackle. Wait, I _cackle_? God, what am I doing?

"So Lily, now that you're calm, how was your summer?" Alice, always the optimist, asks. Her short black hair bobs up and down on her shoulders.

"Horrid." She groans, collapsing into the seat of the train carriage. "I spent all of the summer listening to boring Petunia dribble on about her new boyfriend _Vernon_. Eugh. He is the vilest person ever."

"How many letters did you get from Potter?"

"A hell of a lot. I swear I will be the end of him." Her red hair shakes as she makes violent gestures.

I can imagine her with her hands around his neck. Something tells me she's not far from that point…

"What about you guys?" She asks, looking at us.

Now it's my turn to explode.

"Oh you know, the usual, staying at home, bored WAITING FOR LETTERS!!"

They both stare at me like I'm wearing a big sign on my head saying 'I'm a twonk!' in huge letters.

The crack up laughing at my annoyance. Stupid friends.

I glare at them. Nice come back… never fails.

"We're sorry Az, it's just that letters aren't everything." Alice tells me, still giggling.

"Do you have any clue how bored I was? I was waiting for your sodden letters, in my room, hardly coming out because my stinking cousins were staying for the summer!"

Yes, that is correct, cousins. Evil, vile, smelly creatures. I repeat: EVIL, VILE, SMELLY CREATURES!!

All they seemed to do was use my owl to send letters across the sodden world! So I had no way of getting _my_ letters to _them_.

"Oh alright, alright, we're sorry. I was just…busy." Lily says.

"I was… uh, well, I kind of have to tell you something…" Alice says cautiously.

We both look at her embarrassed face.

"Well, I spent my summer with… someone… A boy… called…"

"Spit it out, already!" Lily says impatiently.

"Okay, I spent my summer with Frank Longbottom." She cringed and put her face in her hands.

Lily and I are both taken aback. Alice? Our innocent Alice? With a boy? Not to mention FRANK LONGBOTTOM?!

Calm down Azura, calm down.

Alice looks at us. "Well? Are you going to say anything?"

We pick our jaws up off the ground.

"Wow." Lily just says.

"Yeah, wow."

Silence. Maybe she's angry.

Lily then came back to reality. "Alice… Did you and Frank do… anything?"

Alice smirks. Oh no. "We might have…"

"Like what?" I suddenly ask.

"Stuff… we kissed… and huddled close together… and may have… slept together?"

She says it so quiet we can barely hear. However, barely is enough.

"You what?!" Lily and I yell out in unison.

"Well, I got given a bottle of champers for my birthday and… well we drank it… and one thing led to another."

We stare at her. Another jaw dropping bit of information.

Oh my god.

"Alice? Are you joking around?" Lily asks her.

She shakes her head, looking guilty.

Oh my god. OH. MY. GOD.

After a while of only being able to hear the train moving on the tracks it is forced to follow, Lily speaks.

"So, was he… any good?"

Alice cracks up laughing, and I follow.

Oh god, it is funny.

"Well, he is rather… huge…"

Was this ALICE? The same Alice who refused to even listen in sex education? She plugged her ears with some form of sound blocking spell and sat there through the entire lesson thinking about food.

We have finally lost it.

Lily suddenly stops laughing and looks horrified.

"Oh my god! The head meeting!" She's remembering the meeting she was supposed to attend because she is now head girl.

Of course she made head girl. She's the bloody good two shoes of the school. Sometimes, it even gets annoying.

Little does she know who the new Head Boy is. MWAHAHAHAHAHAH!

James Potter.


	2. Kiss My Arse

Stupid Potter. Why does he have to stir her up? Stupid, stupid Potter. It's his entire fault that I'm sitting here, listening to Lily rant on and on about how stupid it was of Dumbledore to make James Potter head boy along with her.

"I just don't see why Dumbledore would make stinking Potter head boy! He's soo irresponsible! He's such an annoying little prat!"

"So you've told us about a million times!" I yell.

She whips around to look at me. Her face is red with anger.

Why did I do that? Stupid, stupid mouth! Why do you disobey me?!

"What?!" She screams.

"Lily, you need to calm down. It's not Azura's fault that she can't take this anymore." Alice tells her in a calm voice.

"Yeah, I'm sorry Lil, but you need to build a bridge and GET OVER IT!" No, stop making her angrier!

She's begins walking towards me. Oh no. Run, Azura, RUN!

Feet, why are you not moving??

She's so angry tears are forming at her eyes, her face has possibly gotten redder, and she's gritting her teeth.

Alice stops her in her tracks, thank god.

Her face goes blank and she's suddenly laughing hysterically.

Good god, I think she's finally lost it.

She's in fits, giggling so hard I think she might pop.

Alice gives me a meaningful look. I shrug at her. I have no clue what the hell is going on.

I sit on my bed and watch my red-headed friend.

THIS IS FREAKING ME OUT!! Why on earth is she laughing?!

"Lil?" I say slowly. "Lil, are you okay?"

She looks at me, still laughing. "Can't- HA HA- stop- HA HA- laughing!"

Alice looks like a light has suddenly come on in her head. "Lily, have you eaten anything today? That wasn't from the table at breakfast, lunch or dinner?"

She nods, still laughing her head off.

"Did you by any chance take anything from Black, Potter or something that you found?"

"There were- HA, HA- cookies fro- HA HA- m the house elves- HA HA- waiting, ha, in the, ha, dorm." She's bringing it under control…

Or not. She bursts out again.

DING! Goes the light bulb in my head.

"Of course!" I exclaim. "It has to have something to do with those damned Marauders!"

Alice grabs Lily by the shoulders and holds her up.

"Az, go get Reumus. He can help, and if he doesn't, make him."

I run as fast as I can, to find Reumus playing chess with Peter, who is losing dramatically.

"Reumus! It's Lily, she's eaten some cookies that are making her laugh uncontrollably. HELP ME!"

He looks at me, humor definitely in his eyes. "I told them not to do it. Sirius is going to have hell to pay for this one." He tells me.

SIRIUS BLACK?! STUPID BASTARD! I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN! I BET HE CONNED JAMES INTO PUTTING THOSE COOKIES THERE!

"Come on! You have to reverse it, or I think she'll explode!" We run up the steps and I go into the dorm room. He stops at the door.

"What?" I ask.

"This is a _girl's _dorm."

"So?"  
"I'm a _boy._"

"Could have fooled me." I say sarcastically. "Now just get your but in here!" I drag him in by the wrist and he covers his eyes against the 'dangers' of the girls' dorm.

"Reumus, it's okay, there are no bra's laying around."

"Or tampons." Alice added for good measure.

He went green at her words. WIMP.

"Relax Reumus, relax." She told him. He looked around for the laughing Lily and found her with her head buried in a pillow in an attempt to stop the laughing.

I think I'm about to crack up myself, seeing Lily nearly suffocate herself.

I really should be trying to help her but it is so much better to watch her try to stop laughing.

Reumus points his wand at her lazily. "_Sobrerio_!" He exclaimed.

Lily looked up, her face red and painfully crinkled up.

"Reumus! Thank you! You are brilliant!" She hugged him.

"No problem Lils. Just don't eat anymore cookies from the supposed house elves."

DING! Light bulb time.

"What is that supposed to mean? Are you saying you know how this happened?! Did Potter and Black do this?!" She was angry again. Please Reumus don't say anything, please!

Too late, he's started spluttering, trying to explain for them.

"Argh! They will BURN!"

"Now, now Lils, no need to hurt the idiots." I say sarcastically.

"Oh, I'm not going to hurt them…" she says sweetly. "I'm going to KILL THEM." She sounds very evil indeed. I'm scared.

We're walking into the breakfast hall when James and Sirius go whizzing past us. Bloody pests. James is chasing Sirius, who is holding a photo of James as a baby, naked on a broomstick.

I look at Lily who is laughing at James' embarrassment. I begin to laugh as well.

Reumus walks in casually, with his nose stuck in a book, followed by Peter, who is twiddling his thumbs.

We all sit in our usual places, Alice is next to me, while Lily sits on the other side of the table. We serve our breakfast, while Sirius and James are still mucking around. Suddenly, Sirius throws James' picture at us.

He's a small child, on a broomstick, stark naked. We laugh like we just ate those cookies, while James is too scared to come over and get the picture.

Sirius comes over, putting his toned ar- I mean _stupid_ arms around us. "So, ladies, what do you think of Prongs? I assure you, he hasn't really grown…" He says, the sleaze evident in his voice.

"And how would you know, Black?"

Cough, GAY, cough.

He shrugged it off.

I butter my toast as Black tries to flirt with me. And guess what, its NOT WORKING!

"So, Azura, my fine lady, how are you today?"

"Bugger off Black." I swipe at him and miss his black locks.

"P.M.S-ing are you? Oh dear, I guess that means we better do it before that little visitor comes." He says sarcastically.

This time, I find my mark on his face.

Oh, how good it felt.

"Ouch! Blimey, what was that for?!"

"Piss off, Black! I'm trying to eat!"

Really, I am, and seeing his face, makes me sick.

"Sirius, I think you should leave now." Alice gives him a warning glance.

"Alright, alright, I'm going." He sauntered off, rubbing his cheek.

Oh, I rule.

Alice turns to us. "Guys, I'm going to go catch up with Frank. See you in class." She got up and skipped away… well, practically.

Lily looks at me. She's smiling. But it's not a friendly we're-best-friends smile, no it's bad. Its one of those I-have-an-evil-plan-to-get-the-marauders-back smiles. It's more like a smirk.

Oh, joy, Lily is _smirking._

"Lils, what have you got planned?"

"Oh, just a _little_ prank." She says sweetly.

"You're stooping to their level, just so you know."

"Ah, yes, but you see, this little prank, cannot be traced to me."

"Hey, that rhymes." I laugh.

She sighs. "Just wait and see."

"Alright, so when is this going to happen?"

"Any minute now."

Just then, Peter screams. I mean seriously screams. Like a girl.

Lily is smiling.

I look over to see Peter with Potter stuck to him. But it isn't the kind of innocent stuck. No, Potter has his lips glued to Peter's arse. His eyes are wide, so wide that they could be mistaken for plates.

I crack up laughing just as Black gets the same fate as Potter, only stuck on Reumus.

Reumus looks disheveled and confused, while Peter looks shocked. Mind you, I'm pretty sure that Peter is enjoying someone kissing his arse, even if it is forced.

Black and Potter are trying to get free, only it's not working.

Of course it isn't working, this is one of Lily's best pranks ever, and she's going to make sure they can't get free easily.

Lily laughs evilly. It sends shivers down my spine… I really hate it when she does that.

"Lils, don't you think you should reverse it?"

"It'll wear off in an hour. But for now, I think they can go around like that." She laughs again. More shivers.

We move off to class as Professor McGonagall intervenes, pursing her lips at the embarrassed boys.

Charms is up first, with the arse-kissers.

We sit in out seats and wait for the teacher to begin. Alice walks in just on time, her face red and flustered.

"You missed a great show." Lily whispered to her.

"I saw Sirius and James walking around _kissing_ Reumus' and Peter's arse! Did you have anything to do with it?" Alice winked.

Lily nodded, trying not to laugh.

"It was good. Very good." She nodded.

"Thanks." Lily mouthed.

"So, Alice, how was Frank?" I asked.

She blushed. "He's- He's good."

Lily and I laughed at her colouring.

"Alice, stop being shy about it. It's alright for you go and enjoy yourself in a broom cupboard every once in a while." Lily laughed. I just snorted.

The professor walked in, all went silent. "Now, today, we are going to have a study lesson as I must take care of something else. It appears some students have gotten themselves into a slight tangle. That is all."

The professor left. Today is going to be good.

The rest of the lesson is spent talking between us. Mostly about Frank. Alice is in _luurrvve._ She blushes madly for most of the lesson as we talk about… stuff. Stuff being the things that I _**will not**_ mention.

Now we only need to get through the rest of the day. Sigh.


	3. Trouble in the Form of Diggory

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier. She **still** can't get over the prank that she pulled. It's suddenly like she's become queen of the pranksters… which is completely impossible, because Potter already has that position. Or is it Black?

"Hey Azura." Huh, what? Whose voice is that?

I look up to find an extremely handsome face looking at me. Smiling.

"Oh, hey Amos." My heart is beating faster. Amos Diggory is standing before me, in all his gorgeous glory, talking to _me_!

"So, um, I was wondering- I just wanted to know, if you wanted to come to Hogsmeade with me this Saturday?" He grins at me.

lustful sigh

"Yeah, that'd be great."

Oh. My. God. I just got asked out by _Amos Diggory_.

"Great, so I'll see you around, yeah?"

"Yeah." I give him what I hope is a dazzling smile and he leaves.

Here is when I go into day dream mode. Okay, so Amos Diggory has gorgeous brown eyes, a silky full head of brown hair and lips that every girl would die to be locked with.

I give off another lustful sigh before I realise that Alice is looking at me with an odd look on her face. "What's got you so happy?" She asks.

"Oh my god, Alice. I just got asked to go to Hogsmeade with…" Sigh.

"With who? Come on, spit it out." She said.

"Amos Diggory!"

She lets out a shrill scream of girly happiness. "That is so good, did you say yes?"

"Of course I said yes! Do you think I'm stupid? I can't believe he asked _me_ to Hogsmeade."

"Of course he did, look at yourself! You're gorgeous, and he's not the only guy around here who thinks so."

Well, I'm not **that** bad looking. Okay, I have green eyes, brown hair that goes all the way down to my bum, because mum wouldn't let me cut it all off, I have some sort of figure… but I'm nothing special. I'm far too pale and I'm freckly.

"Who are those other guys then?" I ask inconspicuously.

"Well, there's Sirius, even though he won't admit it, he has it bad for you. Then there's Jack Brown, Hamish Wood, even some of the Slytherin guys think you're hot."

"Really? And how would you know?"

"Az, I'm going out with Frank Longbottom, of course I know these things."

"Oh, right." Of course. Frank is supposed to be completely hot, he is. He is known as a sex god. Which isn't really true. It's just that he could have any girl he wanted. Of course he would tell Alice all of the 'Guy gossip'.

"So, how _is_ Frank anyways?" I ask her.

"Oh, he's great; you know what he did? He told me to meet him up in the Astronomy tower and when I went up there, I was surrounded by candles that floated in the air and there was a lovely dinner for two set up. It was so romantic and he bought me a dozen red roses."

"Oh how sweet! He's so romantic!"

"I just said that, didn't I?"

"I hope maybe one day, someone will do that for me…"

"Oh from what I hear, Amos is quite the romantic."

"Well, that is ever so interesting…" We let out the –Ever dreaded- girly giggle. Oh god, what have I become?

--

_**Sirius P.O.V**_

"Hey Padfoot, you know your ever so _lovely_ Azura Lovegood?" James taps me on the shoulder, smirking down at me. These are the times I wish he would bugger off.

I'm trying to concentrate…

"Yeh, what about her?"

"You're going to love this. She's been invited to go to Hogsmeade with Diggory." He's still smirking at me.

"Diggory? As in Amos Diggory?"

"Yeah, she said yes."

AMOS DIGGORY WILL DIE. Why? Because he is a buffoon and Azura deserves better and all he wants is sex from the poor girl! Well, it's not like any other boy wants much else more from her; I mean she's bloody hot.

Her body is the perfect hourglass figure and she's got great boobs. Her lips are so full; I can just imagine kissing them.

Anyways, AMOS DIGGORY IS GOING TO DIE.

"WHAT?! How could she say yes to that… that… that DOUCHE BAG?"

"Calm down Padfoot. I thought you said you didn't care who she went around with?" He raises and eyebrow at me.

"I don't." It's a lie. Yep, no doubt, I **do** care who she goes around with. In fact, I care _very _much. Especially when it's idiots like Amos Diggory.

"Alright, if you _don't care_ so much, why is your face telling me you want to rip his head off?"

"I. Don't. Care. Couldn't care less."

"Yeah, sure. Look Padfoot, do honestly think you can fool me of all people? I'm your best friend."

I get up and we begin walking down to the hall for dinner.

"Okay, so I care. But only a _tiny_ bit."

"Padfoot." He gives me what is supposed to be a tell-me-the-damned-truth look.

"Prongs." I ignore his damned look.

"Padfoot!"

"Prongs!"

We walk into the doors and I suddenly begin seeing red. I march up to Diggory and tap him on the shoulder.

He turns to look at me. "Oh hello Black." He smiles at me.

I narrow my eyes.

**SMACK.**

It felt so good. However, my pure happiness and satisfaction is taken away from me when he comes back at me with his own fist. Oh fuck.

We get into the fight. I punch him as much as I can while he tackles me to ground and we're rolling around.

James manages to wrench me away and Slughorn has Amos.

"What is your bloody problem, Black?" He half yells at me.

"You are!" I struggle to get back at him, even though my lip is bleeding and my knuckles are bruised.

"Sirius! Hold back mate, he's not worth it." James tells me.

"Let go of me, James." I snarl.

"No, not unless you promise not to get back into it."

"Okay, okay I promise." I lie. He lets go of me and I run at Amos, who is now trying to steady himself.

I tackle him to the ground and start laying into him with some more punches.

I'm being pulled off again in no time by James and Moony.

Professor Dumbledore looks grave and McGonagall looks like she's about to explode. I can suddenly see Azura herself looking at me in shock as she kneels by Amos' side, soothing him.

Now, I'm in trouble.


	4. Visitor

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

"Why the **HELL** would you do that, Sirius Black?!" Azura yells at me.

"I'm sorry-"

"I don't want to hear it, Black. Just shut up and go away. I'm never speaking to you again."

That hurt. I don't even know why that hurt, but it did. I should _like_ the idea of her not talking to me, but I don't. I hate it.

"Fine!" I say and I storm off and up to the dorm.

I collapse on my bed. What was I thinking?

As if hearing my thoughts Reumus came in. "You bloody fool." He smirked. "You should _always _just apologise to an angry woman. You never say 'Fine!' and storm off."

"And why not?" Peter asked, coming in behind him.

"Because, my dear friend, it makes them angrier and then they start having thoughts of… uh, cutting your balls off… with spoons." He finished as if he wasn't affected.

"Oh bloody hell." I groan at them and flop onto the floor, in hopes of dying.

"It wasn't your fault, mate." James said.

"What?" Peter looks confused. As usual.

"We all know that when we get jealous, we tend to lose all control and go into fits of rage. Like I said, it wasn't Padfoot's fault."

"Why is she going out with that toerag anyway?" I asked.

"Because he's good looking, had the nerve to ask her out, unlike you, and has done romantic things before, other than having a good snog in the closet." Moony replied.

"That was so… _unhelpful._"

"Sorry, mate, but it's true."

"So, do you admit it, do you, Sirius Black, admit that you like Azura Lovegood?" Prongs said.

No. I don't like her.

Impossible. She's moody and up herself.

_But she's sweet and beautiful and has morals… You know she's amazing._

Oh, god. I freaking LOVE the girl!

"I… uh, that is to say… Yes! Alright, I like her, I admit it."

"Good, now we have something to work with." Moony looked satisfied. Damn Moony.

"What do you mean by that?" I'm getting worried.

"Well, you like Azura, Azura is going out with a total git, and we need to fix that."

"Why? It's not like she'll ever like me back?"

It was true but painful.

"I have some sources who could tell you otherwise." James said. He was red. Oh god, don't tell me he's been with Lily… and he HASN'T TOLD ME!!

"Good god, man, have you and Lily finally stopped fighting?" I ask.

"Well, no. I have been talking to Alice."

"Oh."

"Prongs! You haven't fallen for _Alice_, have you? You know she's with Frank Longbottom!" Wormtail looked aghast.

"No, no, relax, Alice and me are just really good friends." He told us.

"Anyway, moving on, you were saying…" Moony looked at Prongs.

"Ah, yes, according to Alice, Azura has got it bad for you, Padfoot."

"Really? That _is_ interesting. But has she _actually_ admitted it?" I say to them. Immediately, James furrows his brow in thought.

"Not that I know of, but Alice says that she has all the signs."

YAY! WOOOOOOO!

"Those signs would be?"

"Umm… She talks about you non-stop, even if it is bad, it just means you're on her mind a lot. And according to Alice, when she glares daggers at you, there's some other emotion such as lust behind her eyes."

FANTASTIC! I FEEL LIKE I COULD FLY! And I don't mean on a broom stick.

"So, she likes me?"

James nodded like the idiot he is.

If I weren't in a room full of my best mates, I would go all un-manly and do a small victory dance. But that would make me… Well, un-manly.

To say the least, I'm happy. But that still doesn't make the situation any better.

"We've still got a problem." I growl.

"What?" James asks.

"Diggory."

"Ah," Reumus is saying. "That is a problem. We just need to find someone else for him."

That's my boy!

"Yeah, who?" James asks.

"I have an idea." Peter chirps.

Oh no. "Who do you recommend, Worm-tail?" I ask.

"That Hufflepuff, what's her name… That girl he dated last year."

"Samara Colby?"

"Yes, that's her. He's definitely not over her. He keeps looking at her."

Wow, Peter's right. Huh, funny, isn't it?

"You know," James says grinning. "That's not a bad idea." He pats Peter on the back, and he looks overly happy.

_**Azura's POV**_

I stifle a yawn as Slughorn drones on… and on, and on, and on. Does he ever shut up? Ha, I think not. It's now been a week since the Hogsmeade weekend… You know, the one I where I went on a date….

With AMOS DIGGORY! Lustful sigh!!

…

Next to me, Lily is listening intently. Nerd. Honestly, I think she might explode from all of the **boring** information she soaks up.

I snort, trying to suppress a giggle as other paper-airplane flies into her hair. I smirk at her as she rolls her eyes and takes her attention away from Mr. Boredom to untangle the charmed parchment from her fiery red locks.

She glares at my amused expression as she wordlessly hands it to me. As usual, I pull out my wand and the fun begins.

I practice my transfiguration skills and turn it into a mini statue of black. I giggle as he's dressed in pink frills.

I point my wand once more, and he begins to melt. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Lily rolls her eyes at my evil expression, but she's smiling.

"Ahem, are you done yet, Miss Lovegood?"

My eyes widen. "Uh, yes, professor." I say quietly, placing my wand on the table and glaring at the little statue that remains half melted.

He continues droning on until the bell sounds, signaling the end of classes for the day.

"Finally." I breathe a sigh of relief to Lily, who just rolls her eyes and grins.

We walk to the common room and find Alice waiting for us, looking frantic.

"Alice, what's wrong?" Lily asks.

"F-Frank and I h-had a fight." She said, tears threatening to spill.

"Oh, Alice, what happened?" I asked concerned for my friend.

She looks at us. "I-I don't want to marry him straight away."

"Alice, how could you not want to marry him? I thought you dreamt of it." Lily states. It was true. She always went on and on about how her and Frank were going to have a son called Neville, and a daughter called Celeste.

"I do want to marry him! I love him. It's just that he asked me to marry him."

It makes no sense. I tell her my thoughts.

"I meant to tell him, I couldn't marry him _now_. I have school to finish, and I wanted to start training as an auror. He just thought I said I _never _wanted to marry him. Oh, how could he have taken it that way?!" She sobs.

"What exactly did you say?" I ask.

"He got down on one knee, it was so romantic, and he asked me. At first, I was shocked, then I said 'Look, Frank, I don't think we can' – But he didn't hear what else I had to say!

"What I meant to say was, 'Look, Frank, I don't think we can get married just yet, but after I've started my auror training, then I'd be happy to marry you'. But I never got to finish!" She sobbed, putting her head in her hands.

"Oh, Alice, I'm sure that if you explain what you had meant to say, he'll forgive you and understand." Lily reassured.

"But he won't listen! Every time I've tried to talk to him, he just wouldn't listen to me, he kept walking off and glaring at me!"

"I'm sure he'll come around." Lily soothed. I stood there, rubbing her back as she wiped at her tears and attempted to calm herself.

Suddenly, a note comes flying into the common room, landing lightly in front of me. I open it and it's from Dumbledore.

_Miss Lovegood,_

_Please come to my office immediately. The password is 'Cloud Sugars'._

_Professor Dumbldore_

I tell the girls I have to go and make my way to his office, saying the password at the Gargoyle.

I open the door and I grin as I see someone I recognize. "Xenophilius!" I exclaim at my older brother, throwing my arms around him.

However, when I pull back, I feel my stomach drop.

He looks haggard. He has black bags under his eyes, he is slumping and his usually happy face is saggy. He's only two years older, but he looks like he's in his early thirties.

"Xeno, what's wrong?" I ask in concern.

"Az," He says seriously, pushing me into a sitting position on the chair. "It's mum and dad."

My heart stops, my stomach clenches and I fear the words about to come out of his mouth.

"They're dead." He says putting his face in his hands.

I shake my head in denial, but I somehow know it's true. Tears spring to my eyes and I fight them.

"H-how?" I croak out.

"They were attacked," He pauses, looking up at me. "By Death Eaters." His voice sounds scratchy and unused.

I let out a throaty sob. Xeno gets up and puts his arms around me. We cry together.

It seems like an age when we pull apart. I rub my eyes, still not completely believing it. It just can't be true. They can't be gone.

"What are we going to do?" I ask.

"You're staying here for the next couple of hours, while I sort out some things on the estate. I'll come and get you for the funeral, and then we'll talk."

_And then we'll talk._

Talk? What about? I decide to leave it.

"Okay." I say eventually. He puts his hand on my shoulder, rubbing comforting circles.

"Az, we'll be fine. I've got to go; I'll see you in a couple of hours." He kisses my cheek and squeezes my shoulders in a hug and leaves me sitting there, tears still sliding down my cheeks.

I take a deep breath and get up. Dumbledore comes through the door to his office, looking sad and worn.

"Miss Lovegood, I offer my condolences for your loss. I'm sure that you will find much support from your friends, but if you need to talk…" He trails off, looking over his half-moon spectacles at me.

"Thank you Headmaster." I bowed my head, wiping away tears before exiting and wondering back to the common room numbly.

I climbed inside and was greeted by Lily, who looked up from her book. "What did Dumbledore want?" She asked me.

I didn't know how to answer. I just stared, not realising.

"Azura?" She prompted.

A tear slipped down my cheek. Followed by many others and complimented with a sob. I suddenly can't breathe properly.

"Azura, what's wrong?" Lily asks me in alarm.

"Th-they're g-g-gone!" I sob. She envelopes me in a hug.

"Who's gone, Az?"

"Mum a-and D-dad." I whisper.

She gasps and pulls me closer, Holding me tightly and whispering comforting words to me.

I've gone numb again, my throat still constricted.

"Oh, Az, I'm so sorry." She tells me.

I feel sick. It's sinking in, I think I might collapse.

"Thanks." I manage to croak.

She only hugged me tighter. Tears were still spilling out my eyes as she led me up to our dorm.

We got half way up the stairs before someone called out to us. "Lily-Flower!" It was James' elated voice.

She turned and I could see her shaking her head, giving him a not-right-now look.

"Lily? Azura?" He must've noticed my hunched form in her arms. "Azura are you okay?"

"Look, Potter, just leave it, maybe she'll tell you later." She sighed as we continued up the stairs

I know they're going to find out, so I stop dead in my tracks and face the common room. James looks up at me, seeing my tear streaked face and painful expression. He looks concerned.

"My parents were murdered." I say quietly. A lot of heads snap up and stare at me, dumbstruck.

I turn away and continue up the stairs with Lily rubbing soothing circles on my back. It's helping.

I let out a strangled sob that I can't keep down.

In the dorm room, Alice had been sitting on her bed, deep in thought. A sob coming from e pulled her out of her thoughts and she looked up.

"Azura, what's wrong?" She asked, seeing my state.

"Her parents died." Lily said softly, her own tears threatening to spill.

Alice gasped. "Oh, Az, I'm so sorry." She hugged me and all three of us stood there for a while.

"What about Xenophilius?" Alice asked.

"H-he's fine. He's coming to get me and take me home soon, so I'd better get packing." I say, untangling myself from the other girls.

"Here, pack." Lily ordered to my things, pointing her wand around the room. They obeyed and piled themselves neatly in my trunk.

"Thanks." I mumble.

"D-do you want to be alone?" Alice asks, her voice quivering.

It's the last thing I want. "I think I might go for a walk." Why did I just say that?

"Okay." Lily says.

I walk out the door, down the stairs and through the portrait hole. I had felt all of the eyes on me as I walked through the common room; I needed to get away quickly.

I soon find myself walking up to the astronomy tower.

I open the door and walk inside, breathing in the air as if I hadn't felt fresh air for months. I lean out the large window and look down onto the Quidditch pitch.

I feel like jumping out the window and just falling. I wonder what it feels like to die.

I'm bought out of my slightly suicidal thoughts by the door swinging open. I don't even bother to turn around in hopes that I'm invisible.

But I'm not. Unfortunately.

"Azura, are you alright?" Its **not** a voice I want to hear.

"No, Black, I'm not, now bugger off." I say in a deadpanned voice.

He comes up behind me. "I'm really sorry about your loss."

I scoff. "It's not like you can be blamed for this one, Black."

"I know, but I just thought I could offer my condolences…" He sounds pathetic.

Merlin, I am a bitch. I think he sounds _pathetic_ when he's offering his condolences? What is wrong with me? He's being _nice_, and I'm being a cow.

"Thank you." I say quietly.

"I never really had parents, you know." He suddenly says. "They _hated_ me with a passion because I wasn't their perfect Death Eater son. They tried to kill me when they found out I was a Gryffindor." He snorts.

I turn to look at him. "How come you're still alive then?"

"My favorite cousin rescued me, Andromeda. It wasn't until I was in third year when I ran away. Haven't been back there since."

"Where – where did you go?" _I_ am showing interest in _Sirius Black_'s life? Ha! The irony!

"James' house. His parents took me in and treated me like a son. I couldn't believe someone could be so… _nice_."

"Why didn't you just turn them into the ministry?"

He snorts again. "I couldn't do that, who would believe Sirius Black? The son who hates his family. The troublemaker. Not to mention my family is held _ever so high_ in Pureblood society. Hah!"

He looks angry and something's burning behind the grayish blue of his eyes. I never realised how nice his eyes were.

Ugh! What did I just think?

"My parents were the most amazing people." I say. "Dad was always experimenting with everything, and mum was always dancing wildly about, always trying to make us laugh. I think some of mum's craziness rubbed off on Xeno, but I got dad's flair for experiments." I say, thinking back to how we would spend summers together, before Xeno finished school.

Mum would be dancing in the kitchen, or singing opera, whilst cooking breakfast, while dad would read a book about potions or something that could help with experiment, then get up and kiss mum, just to shut her up once she got too carried away.

"I'm going to miss them." I mumble, more to myself, but Black hears and tears start clouding my vision.

"Who wouldn't miss a family like that?" He says grimly.


	5. Funerals and Kisses

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

I'm standing in the rain, it's perfect weather for a funeral. That's exactly what I'm doing. I'm at the funeral for my parents. Tears streamed down my face they won't stop and it's getting annoying. Curse these tears.

A sob escapes my throat and Xeno's grip on me tightens.

"Why did they have to die?" I choke out quietly.

He looks down at me, tears are also streaming down his face; he looks terrible. I guess I do too…

"I don't know." He whispers.

I nod as if accepting it. But I can't… Not really. They just **can't **be dead! They're my parents and they should be there to experience my life with me!

They should be there to watch me get married! To meet my first children… I sob harder thinking these things.

I feel Lily's hold on my hand squeeze. I invited her for moral support, and also because she knew them too. She had stayed a few weeks every summer holidays, getting to know me and my family. Alice had been there every time, too. And she was here now, standing behind me.

Alice has her hands on my shoulders, Lily is holding my right hand and Xeno has his arm around my waist. On the other side of Xeno, his arm around her waist too, is his girlfriend, Ophelia. They're engaged.

I don't even realise it's over until Xeno lets go of me, walking back inside with Ophelia comforting him as best she can.

Alice takes my other hand and the three of us just stand there, looking at the fresh graves. There are all sorts of flowers decorating each one of them; lilies, daisies, sunflowers, roses of all colours and any other flower people can get hold of.

The tears are still steadily streaming down my face, so I wipe them away. I sniffle. Lily looks at me.

"You okay Az?"

I nod. But I'm not really okay. It hurts… everywhere. My chest, my stomach, my legs are like jelly and my head pounds from the loss of moisture.

They both envelope me in a hug that could squeeze the air out of me. I let them hug me; I've gone completely limp.

"C'mon, Az, we better get inside." I nod again and they share a worried expression. I don't think they like my silence.

Back at school now, I'm sitting in the common room, staring idly into the flames. It's around four in the mourning and I can't sleep. I just keep thinking of my parents; they're gone.

It had hit me like a ton of bricks three nights ago, when I got back. I had broken down crying, and Lily and Alice came to my rescue, taking me out of the great hall and to our dorm.

Yes, that's right; I had broken down in the great hall. Everyone stared at me, pity etched onto their faces. Well, some of them anyway. There were also looks saying 'I know how you feel' from others who had lost their parents.

I snuggled into the chair, still staring intently at the flames.

"Can't sleep?" I jumped out of my skin at the sound of Black's voice.

I shook my head. I had hardly said much since the funeral. It was rare to find me actually talking. I figured it's my way of dealing with it.

"Azura, I know you miss your parents, but you can't keep doing this to yourself." He plonked on the couch beside me. He looked like he had just woken up. "You can't keep it in, you've got to talk about it."

This is creepy; Black is being… _solemn_.

"I-I can't talk about it." I look back into the flames, tears well up in my eyes. "It hurts too much." I whisper.

He touches my arm and the goosebumps come. I start. "Sorry." He says, grinning sheepishly.

"It's okay." I tell him.

"Have you spoken to Alice or Lily about it? Anyone?"

I shake my head. "I can't talk to them, they won't understand…"

"I'm sure they will…"

"No, they won't. They still have their parents… I feel so alone…" I whisper the last bit and hope to hell he didn't hear it.

He cups my chin, forcing me to look at him. His eyes are tender and I think I've stopped breathing. "You're not alone." He said before closing the gap and placing his lips on mine.

My eyes flutter shut and I kiss him back. He's a really, really good kisser. He doesn't kiss like I thought he would; rough and demanding. No, he's soft and gentle.

I suddenly realise what I'm doing. My eyes snap open. I'm kissing _Black_??

I pull away and stand up, I run.


	6. Jealous of what?

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

**(A/N: Sorry about the spelling thing with Remus and Sirius' names. I'm not a very good speller. Eh! You'll live. But just so you know, it shall get better.)**

As I snuck out of the common room, I tried not to be noticed.

Why? Sirius Black, of course. We _kissed_. _Sirius Black_ and I _KISSED_!

It scares me… Really scares me that I had a 'heart to heart' with Black, and then we kissed.

It has **absolutely nothing** to do with the fact that I enjoyed it oh, so, much…

WAIT! I have a **BOYFRIEND**!! Yes and his name is Amos Diggory. The one Black attacked.

… And I like him very, very much. Honestly! I do; he's smart (sort of), great looking, athletic and sensitive. And a very good kisser.

_**Black was better and you know it.**_

WHAT?! No he wasn't! Black will never – I repeat – **never** be as good as Amos.

_**You loved kissing Sirius… Don't deny it.**_

Argh! I did **not** enjoy kissing Black!

_**Lies! All lies!**_

Shut up.

Oh god, I've gone insane. Hah! Figures it would be Sirius Black who drove me to the point of arguing with myself.

_**Aha! So you admit it! His kiss is driving you insane!**_

Yeah, because he had the audacity to kiss _**me**_!

_**But you did kiss him back… Besides, it's only driving you insane because you want it to happen again… and again, and again, and again…**_

Oh shut up! You are annoying.

_**Aha! Success!**_

The **annoying** voice fueled by hormones exclaims… I'm ready to pull out my hair because of it.

As I near the Great hall I feel a hand grab my arm and turn me to face him.

"Hey Azura." Amos says. I smile.

"Oh, hey Amos." He pulls me closer to him and his lips meet mine in a hungry embrace. I kiss him back with fire, determined to get Black's kiss out of my head.

It's not working. Bloody hell! All I can think of is that I, strangely enough, wish it was Black who was kissing me. ARGH!

Finally, he lets me go, intertwining our fingers as we walk into the great hall. I feel awful. Poor Amos, he's got me; a girl who is thinking of kissing another guy. Poor, poor Amos.

He grins at me and my heart flutters. Nope, maybe not. Maybe I really do like Amos and I just went temporarily insane, thinking that Black and I… I can't even think about it.

Just concentrate on the god of good looks himself, Amos Diggory.

He sits next to me, helping him to some toast with jam. I watch as he smiles at all the people that wave at him. There are a lot of them. He's got so many friends… He's pretty popular.

Sometimes I wonder why he's with me, when he could have any girl he wanted.

"You're not eating." He notes with concern.

I sigh. "I'm not really hungry."

"You've got to eat." He's frowning at me. He cares so much. I just want to hug him to death.

Well, maybe not to death because then he'd be obviously dead.

"I'll just grab something from the kitchens in my free." I shoot him a reassuring smile.

He doesn't buy it.

WHY DID I GET THE INTELLIGENT ONE?

"Just eat something, for me, Azura." He smiles.

Damn that smile.

"Fine." He grins. I grab a muffin and butter it up, taking a bite. He looks relieved.

I love that he cares… But honestly, what does he think I am? Anorexic? Of course not. I like my body. I could **NEVER **stop eating.

Suddenly, we hear a scream.

But nobody bothers to get up. We all know what it is.

"JAMES POTTER! LEAVE ME ALONE!!" Lily's coming.

"ARGH GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU TOE-RAG!!" She storms in and takes the seat across from me. And just like every morning, James comes in just seconds later.

"Lily-flower, I know you love me, and this is just your way of expressing you love, but really, darling, if you were to be nice just this _once_…" He trails off, pouting.

She about to explode. DUCK FOR COVER!!

"GO AWAY!"

"Alright Lily-flower, I'll see you later." He says, as if it were just a friendly goodbye.

"Insufferable twerp." She mutters, grabbing some toast and buttering it angrily.

Alice joins us a moment later, taking the seat next to Lily.

"Good morning everyone." She says happily.

Overly happily.

"Morning." I reply on behalf of everyone.

"So, didn't get too out of hand, I take it. James still has his head, I see."

I glance over. What do you know, Potter still has his head.

"Only just." I mutter.

Amos snickers behind his hand.

My eyes travel down further to see Remus giving me a calculating look. Black must have told him about last night.

Speaking of Black, he's glaring at Amos.

I shoot a quick glare back at him, and a questioning look at Remus.

Remus just looks away and my glare goes unnoticed by Black.

Amos' hand tightened on mine as he noticed Black's glare. "I don't think he likes me." He whispered. "I think he might be jealous."

I look at him. "Jealous of what?"

"Oh, only the fact that my girlfriend is beautiful and smart… and he doesn't have her."

I feel my cheeks heat. Oh god, you could cook an egg on my flaming skin.


	7. The Tree

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

"Oh stop it, you two." Lily snaps. She stabs her eggs. Again, and again. Gee, I think she's angry.

I get up, finished with breakfast. "I'm going back to the dorms. I forgot something." I say, hoping Remus will get the message and follow me so I can see what the bloody hell is wrong with him.

Amos smiles. "Alright, see you in potions, beautiful." He says softly, and I'm acutely aware of Lily making vomiting gestures.

I blush and kiss him quickly and leave, sending Lily a glare and Remus a mental message to meet me under 'our tree'.

Incase you're wondering, Remus and I have a tree because we secretly dated during our fifth year.

Yes, that's right, pick your jaw up, Remus and I dated. He was my first boyfriend. He was a great boyfriend, too. Only problem was, he had a secret he couldn't tell me. That's why we didn't work out.

I reach the tree and climb to my favorite branch. It's not long until Remus joins me.

"You wanted to see me?" He asks me.

"I want to know what's up with you. Why were you looking at me weirdly?"

He climbed up and plopped down next to me. "You and Sirius kissed." He stated.

My eyes widened. "How did you know?"

"He asked me for advice." He said simply.

"Why would he need advice? It's not like it meant anything to him…"

He smirks at me. He still manages to make me nervous every time he does. "He likes you." He looks away. "A lot."

Oh. "No, he doesn't." I protest. "It's just because I'm practically the only girl who doesn't want him. That, and I'm dating someone and he wants to wreck that." I begin rambling.

He looks at me seriously. "No, he actually _likes_ you, Azura. He has for a while. Why do you think he suddenly hates Diggory?"

He has a point. Of course he does, he's Remus.

I snort. "You can't tell me he actually _cares_ about me?"

"He does. Why do you think I'm the only one that knows about the kiss? He came to me looking miserable. He said he just wanted to die!"

I snort. "Why would he want to die?"

"He thinks he's made things worse for you. He thinks he's hurting you more… and it's not helping the situation with your parents."

"Oh. Well I guess he's doing the opposite. He's given me something else to concentrate on. Now I have a whole new problem." I say sarcastically happy.

He laughs. "You always know how to lighten the mood."

I grin at him. "So, what did you tell him?"

"I told him to leave you be, if you liked him back, you'd realise soon enough."

I look away from him. Do I like Sirius Black?

"Oh Merlin." I moan. "Why now? Just when Amos asks me out?"

He chuckles. "It's what made him realise."

Oh. "Guys suck." I say.

"Ahem." He looks hurt. "What about me?"

"Oh, right, except you." I pause. "Thanks Remus. I don't know what I could have done without you."

He grins. "You probably wouldn't have realised and gone on hating Sirius."

"Probably." Wait. "Oi! I never said I don't hate him anymore! He's just confused me more, so I should be fuming!" I say in my defense.

"Sure." He says, giving me a knowing look before he jumps off the branch and heads in for class.

**(A/N: Sorry if it's a bit short, but I thought it would do good having it in there. Remus is a cool guy, don't you think? I should really give him some romance… Any suggestions about my new exchange student?)**


	8. The New Girl

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

"Did you hear about the new girl?" Miriam Wildenvamp whispered in Amos' ear. She had been doing this all night. Flirting with **my**__boyfriend. Stupid whore.

"There's a new girl?" He asked.

"Yeah, she's from Australia. She's quite odd." She giggled in his ear.

I felt my face grow red. Bloody whore.

"What house did she get sorted into?" Amos asks Lily across the table.

"She's in Gryffindor. And she is not odd." She glared at Miriam.

Miriam snorted. "Yes she is. Have you seen her? She had freckles." She scrunched up her nose.

Lily went red. "I have freckles." She gritted out.

"And she has an odd accent."

"Oh, we have a Sherlock in the house!" I say sarcastically. Amos snickers behind his hand.

The subject of our conversation suddenly walks into the great hall, looking very unhappy.

I stand up and beckon her over. Maybe it'll make Miriam go away.

She has long, straight sandy blonde hair, which cascades down her back nicely. She's small, but not completely short. She has green eyes that could give Lily's a run for their money, and of course, freckles. But not many.

Stupid Miriam.

"Hi, I'm Azura Lovegood." I say nicely.

"Mattie Blamey." She extends her hand and I take it.

I smile at her. "Wanna join us?"

"Yeah, that'd be great."

She sits down next to Lily and Lily introduces herself, Amos and Alice, who had just joined us, looking flustered.

"Miriam Wildenvamp." She introduces herself snottily. "You must be Matilda Blamey."

A dark look crosses Mattie's face. Uh-oh.

"Don't you **ever** call me Matilda." She's reached across the table and grabbed Miriam by the tie, pulling her forward. "You will face the consequences." She lets go and Miriam cowers.

Apparently, she prefers to be called Mattie. I think I'll remember that.

"So, what's it like in Australia?" Alice asks, as if it never happened.

"It's different. It's hot, too." She tells us, getting herself some food.

"Do you ride those Kanga thingies to school?" Miriam sneers.

I interrupt before she can reply. "Miriam, are you really that stupid?" I sneer back at her. WHY WON'T SHE LEAVE?!

She huffs. "Amos, we need to work on our history project, c'mon." She pulls him up, and he sends me a withering look.

They both leave and Lily lets out a breath. "Finally, that bimbo is gone." She says, eating some mash potato.

"Yeah." Alice sighs. "Anyway, Mattie, how come you transferred here?"

"My dad died recently and mum wanted a fresh start, so we came to England."

"Oh, I'm so sorry." Lily tells her.

"I know how you feel." I say quietly. But she hears me and looks at me questioningly. "My parents are both gone. They were killed by Death Eaters."

"Oh I'm sorry." She says back. "If you need anyone to talk to…" She trails off.

"Thanks, same to you." She grins at me.

"Oh Lillykins!" We suddenly hear from across the room. Oh Merlin, what do they want now?

Lily groans. "Potter, go away." She says sternly.

"But Lily, we have a head meeting." He whines.

CLICK goes Lily's head. She looks up slightly panicked. "Sorry guys, gotta go." She runs off with Potter on her trail.

"Who's that Potter kid?" Mattie asks.

"Oh he's only smitten with Lily. He bugs her all the time."

"I can see why. They'd make a great couple." She comments.

Alice chokes on her food.

I give her a questioning look. "Do you think so?"

"Well, yeah."

Wow, she's courageous, no wonder she was put in Gryffindor. I think about it for a second, imagining Potter and Lily together. And… well, she's completely _right_.

"Now that I think about it, you're right." I say thoughtfully.

Alice grins. "You know what we have to do then, right?"

"What?" I ask her, already knowing the answer.

And that dreaded word come. "Matchmaker."

"Maybe we should just let them get together on their own?" I suggest, not wanting to die.

Alice rolls her eyes. "Azura," She begins seriously. "Do you honestly think they'll get together _on their own_?"

"Well…"

"It's settled then. We'll get them together." Alice says.

"I'm in." Mattie agrees.

I sigh and nod my head. I'm going to be murdered if this doesn't work.

"Oi!" I hear behind me and stifle a groan. "Have you seen James?" He asks.

"No, sorry Sirius." Alice says politely.

"Oh well… Hi, I'm Sirius Black." He gives his hand out to Mattie.

She took it. "Mattie Blamey."

He sits down next to me and puts his arm around my shoulder. I try to scoot away but he's got a firm grip on me.

She gives us a puzzled look. "Uh, Azura, I thought you were with that Amos kid…?" She looks very confused.

Oh, Merlin, no!

"Black… GET OFF ME!" I yell. He jumps back and slides a bit further away from me.

"But Azura…" He whines.

"Black," I warn dangerously.

He looks at me, his features changing into a serious look. Enough with the puns. "I need to talk to you." He mutters. "Now."

I silently get up and follow him through the doors.

He wheels around to face me, looking… _sad_?

"What do you want, Black?" I ask evenly.

"Look, I'm sorry about the other night." He says genuinely.

I give him a funny look. What the hell? Black is apologizing? To ME of all people…

I sigh. "It doesn't matter. I'll forget it, if you will." Is that what I really want though?

"I don't want to forget about it. You're a great kisser."

My eyes widen and I want to tell him that he's great too. But I won't… because it's Sirius Black I'm talking to, and he would probably bug me about it for the rest of my life.

"Well, I'd better go." He said. "Talk to you later, Azura."

"Bye." I said lamely. Idiot. 'Bye'? Is that all I can say?

"Hey Azura, what'd Sirius want?" Alice comes up to me, Mattie behind her.

"Oh, uh, nothing, really…" I lie.

"So, you're sure you're not dating this Sirius Black guy?" Mattie asks.

I look at her bewildered. "NO WAY ON BLOODY EARTH!" I burst out.

"Oh, okay." She says. "But you like him, don't you?"

My eyes widen. How the bloody hell can she say such things?? I go red. Not sure whether it's from embarrassment or anger.

"I _have_ a boyfriend."

"That doesn't answer my question." She says. Boy, she's brave.

WHAT?! I BLOODY WELL SHOULD ANSWER YOUR QUESTION! -.-'

"Well, no, I don't like Black." I don't. Okay, I **don't like Sirius Black.**

"If you're sure." She says in an airy voice I didn't think she possessed.

"Quite sure." I say. Yes, quite sure indeed.

Maybe.

Well, it wouldn't be **so** bad if I did, would it?

_**Would it??**_


	9. Hormones

"Thank Merlin, it's Saturday!" I hear from the bed next to me.

"Alice…" Mattie groans. "Shut up…"

"Sorry, Mattie." She says sheepishly.

"What's the time?" I ask.

"Nearly ten."

"Oh crud. Bloody soggy cornflakes!" I yell, sitting bolt upright.

"What? What's wrong, Az?"

"I've got to meet Amos at 10.30. I'm going to be late!"

"No, you're not; you just need to dress quickly."

I jump out of bed and run over to my closet, pulling out my black jeans, purple scarf, orange t-shirt and my black coat.

I shower quickly, fixing my hair with a drying and styling charm, and run out to meet Amos by our spot.

"Hi," I say puffing.

"Hey," He says coolly, placing a kiss on my lips. "Shall we?" He offers his arm and I take it. He leads me out to the Black lake, where a blanket is set up.

"Wow." I breathe. And it is wow. On the blanket, there's a picnic basket, presumably containing food, some butter beer and glasses, and there is a dusting of rose petals around it.

"Do you like it?" He asks gently. "I've put an invisibility charm on it, too, so we can have some privacy."

Privacy? FOR WHAT?

Okay, Azura, calm down. It's about time you had another make-out session with your boyfriend.

He pulls me onto the blanket and pours me some butter beer. I smile and take a sip.

After some good food, we lay back on the blanket and Amos entwines his fingers with mine. "Azura?"

"Mm?"

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Uh, alright."

"A-are you a virgin?"

WHATT?? Did he just ask that?

"Well, yes." I say, blushing furiously.

He breathes a sigh of relief. "Have you ever thought about it?"

Of course I have. What normal teenage girl hasn't? "I might have, once or twice."

"I love you, Azura, you know that?"

I blush even more. My heart skips a beat. "I, uh, I love you too." Although it doesn't feel right saying it to someone I barely know.

He sits up, and leans over me. Oh god. He's so beautiful.

Amos' hot breath stings my lips and he tenderly kisses me, leaning his body on top. The kiss gets heated as our hands rove all over one another's body. I can feel the heat radiating from us, and my scarf suddenly feels tight and suffocating.

I pull it off, and go back for more. I love this feeling.

My hands find his shirt, unbuttoning it, and pulling it off his torso. Oh, those muscles… I hope I'm not drooling.

My teenage hormones kick in and my hands are moving of their own accord, as they find his belt buckle and easily undo it.

Wow, where is this coming from?

He stops me here. "A-are you sure?"

Do I want this? Do I want to go all the way?

Oh, stuff it, what's the worst that could happen? I'll use those contraceptive charms, I'll take precautions. Besides, isn't it every girl's dream to do it with guy she loves?

But, do I love _him_? How do you know?

Well, there's only one way to find out…

I nod, going in for another kiss. But as we hungrily rip at each other's clothes, something nags at me.

I don't know what, and I don't care as a sudden pain rips through me, from between my legs, and I realise it's too late to turn back now.

I'm not sure how long it lasts, but we lay there panting and sweating, despite the cold.

"Are you okay, Azura?" He asks.

I nod my head, despite the dull pain that's going through my body. "We should get back." I tell him.

"Yeah, do you need help up?" I take his offered hand, and get up with a groan of pain. "I guess it's more painful for girls." He grimaces. "Sorry, I really shouldn't have let you continue."

"Look, Amos, its fine. I chose to do it. You were even sweet enough to ask if I wanted to go through with it." I tenderly push some shaggy hair out of his eyes and kiss him, wrapping my arms around him.

He takes a deep breath. "I love you." He whispers in my hair.

"I love you too, Amos. Come on." I point my wand at myself, and I'm suddenly dressed and clean.

He does the same for himself and magically packs everything up, and he walks me to the dorm.

When I get upstairs, I collapse on my bed. "Hey Az, how was Amos?" Alice asks me.

She's the only one in the room, and I really need to tell someone. "It was… good. Alice, can I tell you something?"

"Yeah, go ahead. I won't tell if you don't want me to."

"Swear?"

"Swear."

"Amos and I, well, we, uh, I'm not a virgin anymore." I confess. It feels good.

She looks at me shocked. "I'm sorry, do you mean to tell me, you had sex with Amos Diggory?" She says quietly.

I nod, looking away from her, with a blush crawling up my cheeks.

"Oh Azura! Are you okay?" She asks.

I realise I'm crying. Oh god, she's going to think he raped me!

"It was consensual, right?"

"Yes, Alice." She sighs in relief.

"Then, why are you crying?"

"I don't know." I admit.

She throws her arms around me, and I realise why I'm crying. I don't love Amos the way he wants me to. The way you're supposed to feel about the person you lose your virginity to.

"Alice, I think I've made a mistake." I say to her.

"Why, Az, what's wrong?"

"I don't love Amos… He said he loved me, and I said it back… but it felt… wrong…"

"Azura, are you telling me, you regret it?"

"Well… Oh, I don't know!" I take a deep breath. "I mean, I _like_ Amos, but I don't _love_ him… It feels wrong to tell him."

"Ah, I see." She smiles at me. "Honey, it doesn't matter if you don't love Amos, you've only had sex. It's not like you're marrying him."

I feel like she's my mum, giving me relationship advice.

"So, it's not a bad thing?"

"No! Of course not! As long as it was consensual sex, you don't need to be in love with him. Besides, people fall in and out of love all the time."

"Thank you Alice. It's really helping." I am truly grateful.

"So, how do you _feel_?"

"I'm in pain. Alice, is it normal?"

She chuckled. "Yeah, I was sore for a couple of days, but it gets so much better." A blush creeps up her cheeks as she realises what she just said.

I laugh.

"So, was it okay?"

"It was really romantic."

"Give me details, please."

"Well, he took me out to the lake, set up a picnic and fed me breakfast and butter beer. Then we were kissing, and suddenly, I had the urge to rip off his clothes… He stopped me and asked me if I was sure, I told him I was, and well, we did it, then and there."

She gasped. "OUTSIDE? BY THE LAKE? IN PUBLIC? Weren't there sticks and leaves everywhere?"

Well, come to think of it… my back hurts… maybe there _were_ a few rocks…

"We had charms on so no one would see, and we were on a blanket. I didn't get too many sticks in my back." I told her.

"Oh, thank Merlin." She said.

"But afterwards, he apologised to me, saying he should have stopped me. Isn't that weird?"

"Yeah, that is odd… Maybe he knows you don't really love him…" She said thoughtfully.

"I don't know, but I can't help but think I should set him straight, before it gets to out of hand."

"Yes, you should. Az, I think you need to tell him how you feel. However, a fling is always good. I think you need someone who can distract you, until you _do_ find someone you love." She reasons.

"A distraction…" I repeat thoughtfully. "I think you're right, Alice, I think I need a distraction." I agree.


	10. Common Room RunIn's

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

**Hey people, sorry if I'm not exactly consistent with updates… just bare with me and all will be well. So, here's the next chapter… a little more sweet and fluffy. Enjoy!**

As I sit staring at the fire, once again, I idly wonder what my parents would be doing if they were still alive.

I feel the tears prick at my eyes and wonder why I'm even doing this to myself. It's funny, really, I haven't thought about my parents for a while… being too consumed in… ahem, **other **things.

Speaking of which, Amos and I haven't really spoken to him since… even though it's only been a couple of hours,

Oh Merlin! I'm stressing out! What if he doesn't like me anymore?! I was probably bad in bed! Oh Merlin! Save me now!

**Azura! Get a hold of yourself! Remember, he's only a ****distraction****! You'll be fine, even if he doesn't like you anymore.** My brain tells me.

I hear the portrait hole open and I whip around to see… nothing. What? Nothing?

"Honestly, you should stop being so damn jumpy." I stifle a scream in surprise and turn back around the spot next to me, where Sirius Black sits, munching on something.

"Oh Merlin, Black, you scared me half to death!"

"Sorry." He says sheepishly. He looks rather good tonight.

"Its okay." **Wait, what?! I did ****not**** just think that!**

"So, how're you doing?"

"Okay, I guess." Thinking of the pain I'm feeling.

He arched an eyebrow. "Okay, huh? Are you sure? You look like you're in a bit of pain, there."

How did he know?

"How could you tell?" I swear I had it masked perfectly.

He laughs softly. "I have a feeling. Now, tell me, why are you sore? Go for a little hike or some Quidditch practice?"

Oh, ha, bloody, ha. "No, Black, I had sex." I blurt out. My hand goes flying to my mouth and I think my eyes are as big as saucers. WHY ON EARTH WOULD I SAY THAT?! TO HIM OF ALL PEOPLE!

He looks shocked, but then angry. Suddenly, as fast as his expressions came, they left, leaving him to stare blankly ahead, get up stiffly from the couch and head for the stairs.

"Do you think I'm a slut?" I say it so quietly that I don't think he could have possibly heard. But to my surprise, he turns around, anger on his face.

"Why the **hell** would I think that?!" He asks angrily. "Of course I don't! I could **never **think of you that way."

I look down. "Then what, Black? What made you hate me?" I can't force my voice to be stronger; it's just not working.

I hear him walk back over to me, and his hand cups my chin, forcing me to look him in the eyes. "I don't hate you."

I'm suddenly angry. "Well then, what was that reaction all about?!"

"What reaction?"

"Exactly!"

"What are you talking about?"

"When I blurted it out, you looked shocked, then angry… then nothing! Why? Is it that bad?"

He dropped my chin and turned again to walk.

I get up and grab his arm roughly, spinning him around to face me. "Tell me!"

"I just didn't want to have a girl talk, that's all." He says lamely. We both know he's lying.

"Don't lie to me, Black!"

"What does it matter to you?! Why does it matter what _I_ think anyway?! I'm just someone who annoys you to no end… someone you could **never** care about." He says the last bit quietly and now he's glaring at the floor, as if it can be blamed.

"Is that what you think?" I say softly.

He nods, and I feel the tears coming to my eyes, and I don't know why I'm crying. "Well, you're wrong." I say, cupping his chin.

His lips meet mine, firm with shock, until he deepens the kiss, pulling me to him, with his arms wrapped around my waist.

He pulls away, a questioning look plastered all over his face.

Oh Merlin, what've I done?! I have a boyfriend!

"We seem to be making this a habit." He says cheekily. "Are you going to run this time?"

I'm still in shock, and I haven't reacted.

He shakes me slightly. "Damn it, Azura! Make up your fucking mind! It's not that hard! Do. You. Like. Me. Back?"

"I, uh…" Yes! my mind screams. I LOVE you! "Yes." I sigh.

"There, now, it wasn't that hard." He pulls me close, into a hug.

"I still have a boyfriend." I remind him dully.

He lets go of me, angry again. "Bloody hell, Azura!" He turns away from me and begins to pace. "You tell me you like me, then you just… Argh!"

He turns to me, gesturing wildly with his hands. I think he's had it with me.

"I'm sorry!" I cry.

He stops, staring at my trembling figure. He blinks at me, running a hand through his hair. "Bloody hell. Just forget it, okay. Forget it." He stomps up the stairs, and this time, I don't stop him.

I sit back on the couch and begin to sob uncontrollably. My life has just been royally screwed. Oh, joy. Just what I needed to ad to my problems; Sirius Black has a _thing_ for me… and I have a thing for him too.

What am I going to do?

I hear someone else come down the stairs and hurriedly wipe away my tears, turning into the shadows, to hide my face.

"Az?" It's Lily.

"Yeah?"

"Are you alright?"

"You heard us, huh?" I deadpan.

"Sorry. I couldn't help it. And I didn't want to interrupt."

She sits down next to me, putting her arm around my shoulder. I lean back on her and sigh. "I don't know what to do." I sob. "I like him, Lily, and I can't help it. But I'm going out with Amos… and I like Amos, too." I groan.

"Shh, it's alright. If it's any consolation, I'm having problems with my resistance to James."

And we hadn't even started planning their get-together.

I send her a questioning look, she continues. "I don't know what he wants from _me_ of all people. But James is really sweet, funny, and I can't stop thinking about him some days… He brings out fire in me, Az. Do you know what I mean?"

I nod eagerly. "I've seen it, Lils, lots of sexual tension." She blushes. "Oh, hey did you know Alice was plotting to get you two together anyways."

She raises her eyebrow. "Really, now?"

"Yeah, her and Mattie."

She actually laughs. "Oh, Merlin, that's rich. But we don't need their help… well, I mean, soon enough, I'm going to give in…" She said.

"James isn't such a bad person." I reason.

"Yeah, well by sound of it, Black seems to care about you, a lot. Maybe you should give him a chance."

I bite my lip.

"Is something stopping you?" She asks.

"Well, it's just that A-Amos… I think he's in love with me." I say slowly. "He told me he loved me after we, uh… you know…" I trail off, hoping she gets the meaning.

Her eyes widen. "Oh! Azura! Holy Hells! Wow." She babbles.

"Shh." I quiet her down.

"So, what are you going to do?"

I bite my lip again. "I guess I have to stop it before he gets too far ahead of himself. But I don't want to seem like a slut."

"Well, this is wretched timing." She comments.

"I agree."

"You know what? I think you should give Bl- Sirius a go."

"Only if you say yes to James." I smirk in her direction, suddenly feeling so much better. She won't give in that easily.

"Alright."

Blink, blink. I'm sorry, what?

"I'll do it." She smiles at me, before she heads up stairs again, leaving me, once again, by myself in the common room.


	11. Malfoy and The Goons

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

**Okie-dokie, here's chapter 11! Bahahah, I hope you like it. Review, people. xD **

"Amos," I begin nervously, concentrating on a piece of hair that came loose from my long braid. "We need to talk."

He grins at me, and stands up from the Hufflepuff table, placing a kiss on my lips. "Sure, shall we go somewhere private?" He seems so happy, not knowing what's going to happen. I suddenly feel very bad.

But, it's got to be done. I cannot keep this up. He's better off without me. I'm not worth the heart break.

Besides, I've got a bargain to stick to. Lily has already said yes to James, and now it's my turn to get Bla-**Sirius**. It's been a week since the 'thing' – which is what I am classifying it as – and he hasn't said one word. Nope, not even an insult.

Amos takes me into an empty class room. He raises an eyebrow at me, snaking his hands around my waist. I pull back and he looks confused.

"Amos, I think we should break up." See? Not so hard.

Yeah right. I can practically hear his heart break. He steps away, a frown on his face. "Why?" He asks.

"Because I think we should stop this before you too attached to me. I mean, I don't _love_ you, Amos, and I'm sorry I don't, but I can't keep this going when all that's going to happen is you getting hurt." I suddenly wonder where I got the courage to say that.

Oh, right. Gryffindor.

He stares at me, suddenly a grim smile appears. "You care about me, though."

I sigh. "Yes, Amos, I do… it's just – not in **that **way." I look down, away from his eyes.

He runs a hand through his hair, thinking.

"I'm sorry." I whisper.

To my major surprise, he chuckles. "Well, at least you told me. I'd rather not get 'too attached' as you say."

"I really am sorry, but my heart it belongs to –"

"Sirius Black." He finishes.

"How'd you know?"

"Oh, c'mon, Azura, I've seen the way you look at him I've seen the way he glares at me. I know there's something between you. I may be in Hufflepuff, but I am not stupid."

I groan. "Why are you smart?"

He smiles at me. "If you ever change your mind, Azura, just let me know." He says before leaving the classroom.

See? Not so hard.

I make my way back to the great hall, sitting next to Lily.

"I did it." I tell her glumly. I feel terrible, even though he wasn't as cut up about it as I thought he would be.

She smiles gently at me. "How'd it go?"

"He didn't really react. He was sort of… _nice_."

She laughs. "He probably sensed it, Az. Now, what are you going to do about Sirius?"

"I don't know." I admit. "I could apologise."

"I think you should. And before Saturday, too. Maybe we can go on a double date." She says excitedly.

"Oh goody." I agree sarcastically, of course.

"Well, how about now. Look, there he goes. Catch up before the other ones do." She pushes me up, and I look longingly at my food.

"Fine." I grumble.

She gives me a grin and hands me a piece of toast. I follow Sirius out of the hall and down towards the dungeons, where we have potions.

"Sirius!" I call out. He stops dead in his tracks.

But I guess he thinks better of it because he quickens his pace. Damn him and his being-fit-ness. It's all that Quidditch, I swear.

"Sirius, wait!" I run after him, but come crashing into something solid with dark hair and a dopey look on his face.

I get up from the floor, glaring at Goyle. I look next to him and surprise, surprise, Malfoy, flanked by Crabbe on the other side. Figures. Malfoy goes **nowhere** without his dopey body guards.

"What do want?" Malfoy is smirking at me.

His smirk turns into a sneer. "Blood traitor."

The body guards snicker. "Oh, piss off Malfoy." I shove past him and he looks angry.

My assumptions are proven correct as I feel big hands grab my arms painfully and push me hard against the wall. Malfoy's wand comes to my throat.

"I should kill you now." He sneers.

"You should just FUCK OFF!" I retort.

"Not likely. Too bad you're such a traitor; I would have loved to get a piece of you." He runs his free hand through my hair and goose bumps prick at my skin.

"Don't touch me." I spit and wince in pain as the grip on my arms tighten.

"Oh, a feisty one! I like that." He raises a blonde eyebrow at me. I just want to scratch them off.

He leans into me, smirking, as if he's about to kiss me, but his body guards have forgotten to restrain my legs and I kick forward, hitting him square in the balls.

He squeaks, before falling to his knees, clutching his crotch. I smirk at him, but realise I'm still being held up against the wall.

"You bitch!" He wheezes out as he stands up. Mustn't have hurt that much, considering there's nothing there. Ha, he was probably just faking.

"Serves you right, you death eater!"

"Blood traitor." He sneers, sticking his wand into my exposed throat.

"Let me go, Malfoy, or I'll scream and you'll be in so much trouble." I warn.

"No, I think I'll just… _Silencio_!"

Bastard. I glare at him, hoping his hair will catch on fire. I struggle, kicking out at him again, but this time, he grabs my leg, rubbing his disgusting hand up it, until her reaches the hem of my skirt.

I attempt to kick out, but the bastard is strong.

"Nice legs." He comments.

I glare.

"Get your hands off her, Malfoy." I hear from behind him.

Malfoy smirks, turning around slowly. "Ah, Black, how _nice_ to see you."

"Let her go." He grits out.

I can see anger contorting his features, his blue eyes are ablaze. I wish I could snog him senseless, or at least cheer for him, but unfortunately, I'm stuck against a wall with a silencing spell on me. Grr.

"Why? She not _your_ girlfriend."

"Malfoy, I'm warning you." He says dangerously.

"No, Black, _I'm _warning _you_. It would be three against one, you would lose."

"Maybe, maybe not." His face turns blank suddenly, and he begins to twirl his wand around his fingers.

The vice like grips on my arms loosen a bit, the goons are getting their wands out.

Ha! Like they have a chance.

"I am not afraid of you, or your goons, Malfoy." He says. There's that Gryffindor bravery! Yay! I'm saved!

Or not, I mean three against one?

"Really? Because you should be. _Unduro_!"

Malfoy's curse is shouted at the same time Sirius shouts his. "_Ventera_!"

Sirius jumps out of the way just as an orange light is about to his him in the chest, but Malfoy wasn't so lucky.

I laugh silently as Malfoy begins to vibrate. He vibrates faster and faster until I can hear his teeth chattering inside his thick skull.

Crabbe and Goyle drop me, and I take the opportunity to get out of their reach and pull out my wand, even though I can't use it all that well without a voice.

I signal Sirius to undo the jinx and he does it quickly.

"Thank you." I breathe.

"You take Crabbe, I've got Goyle. Just something small… that will stop them from coming after us. As soon as it hits them, run." He whispers.

I nod, aiming my wand at Crabbe. "_Bostus_!" I shout as Sirius shouts something else.

Crabbe falls to the ground, giggling like a girl, with snot trailing from his nose and Goyle is standing stock-still.

We bolt down to the dungeons, just on time for the morning bell to ring, telling the students to get to class.

"Thank you so much." I puff out.

"Are you alright?" He asks, concern in his blue eyes. Concern for me. _Me._ Oh Merlin, it makes my stomach do flip-flops and my skin redden.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Listen, I wanted to talk to you about –" But I'm cut off as Slughorn enters, his booming voice echoing.

"Ah, my first two students of the day!" He says, smiling widely. "Miss Lovegood, this is so unlike you." He remarks.

"I, ah, just wanted to get in there and do some work." I say enthusiastically.

He laughs loudly. "Alright then, but we'll have to wait for everyone else, I'm afraid." He says gravely.

I follow him inside, Sirius behind me, and take my seat. Sirius opts for the safe option, away from me. I sigh.

So much for having a chat.


	12. Moonlight Encounters

It's a full moon tonight, I remember as we move silently through the shadows. We're following the Marauders, Mattie and I, that is. They've snuck out again, and I need to talk to Sirius. Why haven't I spoken to him yet? Well, it's been two weeks, and yes, I have been trying… it's just that every bloody time I get close to him **something** happens. Grr.

Mattie points towards the Whomping Willow and my heart beat quickens as I see them disappear into it. Oh Merlin, why did I come out here?

I have a bad feeling about this.

"Mattie." I whisper. "I have a very bad feeling about this."

She whips around to look at me and then she grins. Dun, dun, DUNNNNN. "Relax, Az, I'm sure we'll be fine. They're probably just sneaking out to get on the grog." She says with her Australian accent.

I take a deep breath and nod to her before we begin creeping around again. We reach the Whomping willow and all is quiet. Mattie looks around for any sign of an entrance and finds it, gesturing me over.

It's a tunnel-like entrance and that bad feeling is back.

Before I can protest, Mattie swings her legs through the tunnel and falls through. I squeak my protest before following. Gryffindor, right?

I land on a hard surface after closing my eyes for a split second. "Oof." Is all that comes out.

"You right, Azura?" Mattie asks, amused.

"Yeah," She pulls me up – she's damn strong for such a small person – and we continue through the tunnel until we come to a hatch of some sort.

"We're not going up there, are we?" I say fearfully. _Anything_ could be up there.

She chuckles. "Where's your Gryffindor bravery?" Then before I can retort, she once again takes the lead and goes up through the hatch and pulls herself into a standing position.

"Coming?" She offers her hand for me, the less athletic and more reluctant one.

She pulls me up through the hole and I get to my feet, looking around. Mattie silently signals for me to follow her as she makes her way to the only room with light coming from it.

We sneak up there quietly, making no sound, so we don't alarm them.

As I peek through the crack in the door, the first thing I see is Remus, changing shape. I bite back a gasp, thinking he's an animagus.

Oh, how wrong I am.

He looks to be in pain and I squeak as he lets out a silent scream, his face changing shape, and his skin giving way.

Remus Lupin is a werewolf.

Suddenly, as Mattie lets out her own slightly louder gasp, Remus turns toward the door, spotting us, just as his pupils turn black and widen. He looks terrified and lets out a howl.

My eyes are trained on Remus and his painful transformation, and I think I'm crying. But not for myself, for Remus, because he can't cry; he's in too much pain.

"Azura! Get out of here!" Sirius screams at me. "Now!"

"Leave!" James chimes in, pushing us away.

"Remus!" I yell. Oh Merlin, Remus.

Sirius grabs me, but I'm barely aware of it, as I keep replaying Remus' terrified face as he spots us.

"Azura, leave, now! Please!" He begs and I snap out of it. But before we can move, I hear a blood chilling howl. A howl that comes from Remus.

"Oh, crap." Sirius mutters as Remus in his gigantic werewolf form, comes out into the hall, growling and sneering at us. "RUN!" Sirius and James yell at the same time.

Mattie grabs my hand and we sprint away.

Oh my god. OH MY GOD!

I'm freaking out, and it's not a good thing to do when you're running from a werewolf.

Then I realise it. Remus' werewolf form hadn't followed us.

I look back to where I though he should have been, and along with the werewolf, there's a stag and a large black dog fighting him off, keeping the werewolf from harming us.

I briefly wonder where they came from before Mattie yanks me hard toward the exit. "C'mon, run, Az, we've got to leave!"

We speed up until we're climbing down the hatch and up through the tunnel, coming out to the whomping willow.

We collapse on one of the roots, gasping with relief. "That was so close!" Mattie puffs out.

"Yeah." I agree.

We hear footsteps and spin around to face them. I'm surprised to find Sirius looking very angrily at us.

"What the **bloody hell** were you thinking?!" He shouted at us both.

We didn't answer, taking in his expression and the way his clothes were slightly obscured, as if he'd been in a fight.

"That was beyond stupid!" Oh the irony! He's lecturing _us_ about stupid. Hah!

"We're sorry." Mattie mutters.

His eyes sweep over to her, and I finally notice that he had mostly been talking to me, _yelling at me_.

"I bet you are!" He said bitterly. "You tell no one of this, understand?" He said darkly. We both nodded, not wanting to upset him more.

He went to walk away. "Wait, Sirius!" I stopped him. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Not now, Azura." He said before breaking free of my grip on his arm and disappearing into the darkness.

Mattie looks at me. She's scrutinizing me, I can tell.

"What?" I snap.

"Nothing, I was just… never mind."

"No, tell me." We begin walking back to the tower.

"Alright. I was just wondering what it is you see in him. I mean, he seems a little… violent."

I raise an eye brow at her. "Well, I guess he's… I don't know… he's _deeper_ than I thought he was. It's hard to say, but I just feel this _thing_ that's pulling me to him… it's odd I know." She nods slowly.

"I know how you feel…"

Blink, blink. "What? Who?" I ask.

"Well… it's not like he _knows_… but I, uh, oh god, this is extremely girly of me to say, but I kinda like Lupin."

My eyes widen. Extremely girly? Oh yeah. But REMUS? When did this happen?!

"Wow." I say. I finally notice she's blushing scarlet and this is probably very uncomfortable for her. "Well, Remus is a great guy."

"Yeah, I know." She sighed. "That's exactly the problem."

Wait, wouldn't the problem be something to do with Remus being a werewolf??

"He's a great guy, and would never be interested in me, of all people."

"How do you know that? I bet he likes you too."

She laughs bitterly. "I can't even talk to him! How can he like someone who won't even talk to him?"

"Come on, we'll discuss this in the common room." I suggest as we near Gryffindor tower.

We open the door to the common room and find a quiet corner, away from the still-awake students, who send us a questioning look, wondering why we're coming in after curfew.

"Okay, so why can't you talk to Remus?"

"I don't know." She sighs. "He's just so… kind and smart… and I'm not smart, and I'm a total bitch."

I laugh, but stop. This is meant to be serious. "Okay, one, you _are_ smart. Two, you can be a bitch, but once someone gets to know you, they'll see all your good qualities. Like, how you stick up for people when they're being bullied. Or how you have an open mind. And how you can look past differences or faults and still like a werewolf."

"Oh, right. He's a werewolf." She says flatly.

"Didn't you see the ginormous thing her transformed into?" I ask sarcastically.

"Yeah. But I honestly don't care." She said. "I don't mind at all, I mean, it just makes him so much of a better person in my books. Imagine, having to go through _that_ every month!"

She has a point, and I know it. There's no denying it.

"So, what are you going to do about it?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

"I, uh, I don't know." She muttered, looking away, her cheeks flushing.

"Well, we'll need some help."

Her eyes widened and I felt compelled to laugh, but restrained myself. Just. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, Mattie, we are going to have to call in reinforcements." I smirked. "We need to call in Alice." Dun, dun, DUNNNNNNNN! I could practically see the look of impending doom in her eyes.

**(A/N: Hey, OMG another chapter! This one was alright, but I figured I'd put a little more of Mattie in there, even if it's not much showing of her planned personality. I am planning a little companion piece to this, by the way, and it'll be about Mattie/Remus, where you'll actually get a look into Mattie's mind OMG. LOL. Anyways, read and review.)**


	13. World's Best Kisser

**Okay, everybody, this is **_**the**_** chapter. Enjoy it people.**

After hours of Mattie convincing me to give her another week or two before involving Alice, we must have fallen asleep. I say this because I suddenly feel hands shaking me awake and the sky outside is slightly lighter.

"Azura." I hear the voice of Sirius, and become aware that warm hands are on my shoulders.

I look up and smile groggily at him. "Finally." He sighs. I notice he looks horrible; bags under his eyes, hair a mess, clothes askew. "I've been trying to wake you for ten bloody minutes."

"Sorry." I grin sheepishly.

"It's okay, listen, you and Mattie are going to go up to bed before we bring Remus in. Then, at midday, you two are going to sneak away and meet us in the room of requirement, understand?"

"Okay, Sirius. Oh! Before I forget, I've been trying to tell you this all week, but I broke up with Amos."

He turns away from me. "I know." He says softly.

He knew? He **KNEW**?!

"Then why the hell didn't you do anything?!" I sputtered.

"I don't know. Maybe it's because you don't even like me."

Grr. He was being a prat now, and he knew it. I'd spent the last couple of weeks trying to convey that damned message for him, but no, of course he has to be a prat about it! ARGH.

"Fine. You know what? Think what you like, Black," He flinched at the use of his last name. "Come and find me when you decide I'm good enough."

"You're good enough?! _You're_ good enough?! Last time I checked, _Lovegood_, _**I**_ was the one who wasn't _**good enough**_!" He snaps at me, pulling on my wrist.

I yank it out of his grip and spin around to face him. "You were _always_ good enough. I just never realised it until now." I say quietly and storm off, leaving him standing there.

I get into our dorm room and Mattie is sitting in my bed. "Hey, are you okay?"

I groan. "No."

She stands up and puts an arm around me. Sometimes I think she'd make a great mum, but if I ever told her that, she'd probably hex me back to the 1800's.

"He's being an idiot."

No shit. "I know. Or maybe we're just not meant to be." For some reason I believe that statement more than if someone shouted 'it's all good, Az, he'll come round', because I know he's stubborn… and I admit that I am pretty stubborn myself.

"I don't see why he can't just get it in his head that I like him back. He's just being a git!"

"Az, do you **mind**?" Lily says groggily from her bed.

"Sorry Lils. Anyway, we'll talk about this later. We'd better get to bed, and you had better get into your own room."

She nods and pats me on the shoulder before leaving.

I sigh and jump into my bed, still clothed, and close the curtains. My head hits the pillow and I'm instantly in dream land.

I wake up with a start as my curtains swoop open, showering me with sunlight.

I groan. "What time is it?" I ask the figure which is most likely Lily.

"Quarter past eleven." She says. "Why the hell were you two coming in at five-bloody-thirty in the morning?" She demands in a motherly demeanor.

"We fell asleep in the common room. Black woke us up and sent us to bed."

She did a double-take. "_Black_? Az, did you and Sirius have another fight?"

I burrow my head into my pillow. "Yes." I send the muffled reply.

"Oh, Az, why can't you two just stop fighting to see what's in front of you?"

"Bloody hell! This one wasn't my fault!"

She raises an eyebrow at me. I groan.

"I honestly wasn't. The stupid git thinks I think he's not good enough! I told him that I broke up with Amos – you know how hard I've been trying to tell him – and what does he say? 'I know'. Grr. Bloody prat!" I mock.

"Okay, Az, calm down. But yes, I agree. Bloody prat."

"That's the spirit. Now, what did you say the time was?"

"It's now… nearly twenty past eleven."

"Well, have you eaten breakfast yet?"

"Yeah, but I'm going out to Hogsmeade with McGonagall for some Head girl stuff." She sighed. "How James managed to get out of it, I do not know."

"Okay, well, do you know if Mattie's awake yet?"

"Yeah, she came in here about ten, looking for you."

"Ah, okay, alright Lils, have fun with McGonagall." She sends me a mock glare before retreating.

I jump in the shower and quickly dress in some black muggle jeans and a nice jumper from Mrs. Evans.

It takes me all of about twenty minutes and I'm out in the common room finding Mattie, so we can quickly duck into the kitchens and get some food before going to the room of requirement.

"Hey, Azura, have a nice sleep?"

"Yeah." I roll my eyes at her sarcasm. "Ready? We've got to go to the kitchens, I'm starving."

"Uh, won't there be food in the room of requirement? You know how it's the room of _requirement_ and all."

I roll my eyes. "Fine." I sigh and we head down corridor after corridor until we come to the place.

There's already a door there and we simply walk in, not bothering to knock.

As soon as we walk in, I feel someone pull me into a bone-crushing hug. "Can't breathe!" I wheeze.

"What were you two thinking?!" Remus yells as he hugs Mattie.

She blushes furiously and moves behind me shyly.

"We're sorry, I just wanted to talk to…" I was about to say Sirius, but I stopped myself. "Black."

Remus pauses for a second, before raising an eyebrow at me. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

I shake my head and his eyes move over to Mattie.

"N-no." She stutters.

He looks relieved. "I told you, Moony." James says.

"I know, but I didn't know whether I could trust you."

I snicker. "So, you wanted to talk to us?"

"Well," James begins. "We wanted to beg you to keep this a secret. It _**cannot**_ get out."

"We promise not to tell a soul."

"Good, now, to more important matters, I'm hungry."

"Oh, Merlin, yes! Me too." I agree eagerly as a large dish of pancakes comes out of nowhere with plates for everyone.

We all dig in, and settle into the comfortable couches. Mattie and I share a couch with Remus. Mattie keeps glancing at Remus and he's completely oblivious.

Sirius has his own couch and so does James. Peter is sitting on the floor, making a mess out of his pancakes.

"So, this happens every month?" I ask.

"Yeah." Remus replies sullenly.

"So, you can call it you 'time of month'?" Mattie says.

It all goes silent when she speaks, but then we crack up laughing.

"Good one, Blamey." James says.

"Thanks." She blushes as Remus grins at her.

"Where were we last night?" I ask.

"The shrieking shack." Sirius says, avoiding my eyes.

I gasp. "So that place isn't really haunted… it's been you all along?!"

They all nod, grinning.

"Damn. I was hoping to get some good ghost busting done." Mattie says sarcastically to herself, but Remus and I hear and both of us crack up laughing.

"What's so funny?" Sirius asks suspiciously.

"Nothing." Mattie and I say at the same time.

We spend another hour in there, hanging out and having laughs, but soon I need to get out of there.

I step out and realise Mattie's not with me. Instead, Sirius stands next to me. I set my jaw and look away, beginning to walk off, but he grabs me and spins me around.

"Wait, Azura, I didn't mean what I said this morning."

"Are you sure?" I ask snappily. "Because it sure looked like you meant it."

He looks away, hurt. I feel guilty. "I'm sorry, okay?"

Okay, now I feel **really** guilty.

I cup his cheek and make him look at me. "I'm sorry too, Sirius."

He closes the distance between us and we kiss, once again, he's one of the best kissers in the world, so I'm not hard to please.

He bites my bottom lip lightly – his hands are already snaked around my waist – I comply and we begin full out snogging.

I pull away and he grins at me. "Not bad, not bad at all." He smirks.

"You're not too bad yourself, Mr. Black." I say playfully, running my finger along his jaw line.

"Oh, you know I'm the best."

I raise an eyebrow. "Prove it."

He grins and comes in for more. I match him, until behind us someone wolf-whistles. "Now, now children," James says. "Don't eat each other's faces."

Sirius grins roguishly. "I'll eat what I want, Prongs."

I laugh until I realise how utterly _**wrong**_ that sounds.


	14. Mattie?

It's been two weeks since the arse kissing prank and Lily has never been happier

**Hey everyone, sorry it's been a while, but unfortunately, I've lost my USB drive, and am still working on finding it, so just bare with me, this chapter is going to be a little sketchy.**

**In this chapter, we get to know Mattie. Sort of. **

I wake with a start and suddenly become aware that someone is shaking me. I open my eyes and the first thing I see is Mattie.

"Mattie, what? I'm trying to sleep." I grumble.

She looks at me, and for the first time, I notice she's crying. "Azura, please, come with me." She says quickly. She hurries me out of bed, and I slip into my dressing gown.

"Mattie, what is it?" I beg her to tell me as she scrambles down the steps into the common room, and out through the portrait.

"I've got to get to Dumbledore. He can help." She says, more to herself, as we hurry along the corridors.

"Mattie, please, what's going on?!" I ask frantically. I've never seen her like this before. Her hair is a mess, like she's been pulling at it, I can also tell she's been crying, and her eyes are frantically searching for the slightest movement.

"Look, I just need to find Professor Dumbledore. You'll find out when I tell him, okay?" She says as she quickens the pace.

Finally, we reach the gargoyle and Mattie stares at it. "What's the password?"

The gargoyle looks at her and scoffs. "As if I'd give it out, young lady, you're mean to give it to me."

"I know that! But can't you just let me in to see him? It's an emergency."

"Sorry, can't do it. Password please."

"Surely it can wait until morning?" I ask. "You'll be fine in Gryffindor tower." I reassure. She looks at me as if I'm barking mad, but slowly nods her head.

We trudge back to the tower in silence. I can tell Mattie's thinking about something, or at least trying to calm herself down. But she looks frantic and scared and like she hasn't had much sleep.

As we reach the portrait, I mutter the password and watch as she quickly files into the common room.

"Azura, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have woken you." She says. "I was just panicking over nothing."

I know she's lying, and it really isn't nothing, but at the moment, I'm way too tired to suggest otherwise.

"I'll see you in the morning Mattie. Goodnight." I say, before heading up the stairs. I notice she doesn't follow and head to her own room, but slumps onto the couch before the fire and stares into the flames.

As I wake the next morning, it's unusually quiet. I sit up, looking for my roommates, but they're nowhere to be found, and their uniforms are still laid out on their beds.

I wonder where they've gone, so I trudge down stairs and my jaw falls open at the sight of the common room.

I find Alice in the crowd that's gathered around. "What's happened?"

"We don't know," She whispers back. "But there's blood on the floor, too."

I blink. Blood? In the Gryffindor Common room? Who would do such a thing to such a great place?

"Now, students, go up to your rooms, and stay there. I'll let you know when you're allowed to come down. Also, I will be up to check everyone off the list." McGonagall says sternly.

Murmurs arise as everyone shuffles up the tower to their dorms and wait for McGonagall to mark us off the role.

Once we get into our dorm, Alice and Lily look at me strangely.

"What?" I ask.

"You were up at two o'clock this morning, Azura. Please don't tell us you did this." Lily says.

I scoff. "You think _I_ would do _that_?"

"Well, no, but maybe you know who did." Alice says.

"This morning, I was down there, because Mattie woke me up."

"Mattie?" Lily prompts.

"She was hysterical. Crying, frantic, you name it. I left her down there, after we couldn't get in to see Dumbledore."

Lily's eyes widen. "She was crying?"

I agree, it _is_ scary. Mattie is not meant to cry. She's meant to be the tough one. I mean, hello! She _punched_ Lucius Malfoy because he called her Matilda and tried to hit on her. Stupid horny bastard.

"Maybe she was hysterical and she went crazy." Alice theorizes. "She has the capability to do that."

"But she _wouldn't_, Alice." I defend. "We all know that. Maybe we should just ask her." I suggest.

Just then, McGonagall walks in to the room, a piece of parchment floating beside her and a quill ready to mark off the names.

"Now, who have I got here? Ah, Lily Evans, Azura Lovegood, and Alice Brown." She says. She gives us a reassuring smile. "Now, next room…"

"Professor, can we please accompany you to see a friend of ours, she's just a few rooms up." Lily asks politely.

"Certainly." McGonagall says to her favourite student.

We follow her out and reach Mattie's dorm a few minutes later.

"Who have we got here?"

"Ellen Murray, Jenna Bollingsworth, Professor." Ellen says.

"What about the third?" I ask. "Where's Mattie?"

"We haven't seen her since she received a letter from her mother early this morning." Jenna answers. Jenna and Ellen are quite nice girls, if not for the fact that they are completely obsessed with Quidditch.

McGonagall looks alarmed. "Are you sure, girls? Could she have gone to breakfast early?"

"No, she didn't come back. She rushed out of the room, muttering something about her father and Dumbledore." Ellen answers.

My eyes widen. "We tried to get in to see Professor Dumbledore this morning at about something. She was hysterical." I tell them.

"When was this, Miss Lovegood?"

"Around two this morning." I say. "I should have stayed with her, but I left her in the common room. But she wouldn't do anything like that. Never."

"Go back to your dorms; I'll alert the staff if I don't find her in another dorm room." McGonagall said, before sweeping out of the room at a fast face.

We head back to our dorms, and it's not until two hours later, that the school is gathered in the Great hall, with Dumbledore ready to address us.

"It appears," He begins in a grave tone. "We have a missing student. It is unknown how this student went missing, but it was not by choice. I would ask that everyone remain calm and head back to their respective houses to await further news."

"Who's gone missing, sir?" A student calls out.

"A seventh year Gryffindor by the name of Matilda Blamey."

Gasps come from around the hall, my own being very prominent. "Mattie! Oh Merlin." I whisper.

Sirius pulls me to his side, rubbing circles on my back, as Lily buries her face in James' chest.

"Come on, we've got to get to the tower." Sirius says.

"Miss Lovegood." Dumbledore calls. I spin around to face him. "May I have a word in private, please?" He requests.

I nod to Sirius and everyone migrates back to the tower. I head for Dumbledore.

"Miss Lovegood, I wonder, what do you make of this?" He hands me a piece of parchment which has been scrunched up.

In a neat scrawl, it reads:

_I know where you are, Matilda, and I'm coming to get you. I've already found your mother, but it's you I need, dear. _

_Love, Dad._

Goosebumps form on my skin and I look at Dumbledore wide-eyed.

"What is this?" I ask, tears forming at my eyes.

"I thought as much." He mutters to himself. "That, my dear, is a letter from Matilda's very much alive father."


	15. Planning to Fly

**Ooh, what happened to Mattie? And who is her father? You'll find out soon. Don't worry people, I'm not that mean.**

"So Mattie's father isn't really dead?" Alice said. I had just finished telling them about the note.

"Well, apparently not."

"But why would she hide this from us?" Lily asked. "Why would she want us to think her dad is dead?"

"Who knows, maybe she ran from an arranged marriage or something? Or maybe she attempted to kill him, and he's come after her?" James said.

"Mattie's not like that." Remus said quietly.

"We don't know that. I mean, how do we know she's not a murderer or even psychotic?" Sirius theorized. "She's lied about her dad; she could be lying about a lot more."

"No, guys, the note said _he_ was coming for _her_. Maybe he's after her." Alice said. "But why would she lie to us?"

"I don't know." I said.

"What if she's in trouble? Shouldn't we try to rescue her?" Lily said, wringing her hands.

"We don't know that she's in trouble. For all we know, she could have gone crazy, and that note could be a perfectly innocent greeting from her father." James said rationally.

Lily looked at him strangely. "She is _not_ crazy. She wouldn't do _that_ to the common room! There was BLOOD in the common room!"

"Maybe she did it to scare us?" Sirius offered.

"Stop!" Remus suddenly yelled. "You people are insane! Mattie is _not_ crazy, she did _not _cut herself to scare us. She's in danger, and I can feel it. So, what are we going to do about it?" He looked worried, and angry. I guess James and Sirius weren't helping the situation. Everyone went silent.

"Remus is right. We need to find her. Any ideas?" I ask.

"The Marauder's map might be able to help. If she's still in the castle, or if she's close by, we'll be able to find her." James suggested, hesitantly. "I'll go get it." He scrambled up the stairs to his dorm.

"What's the Marauder's map?" Lily asks curiously.

"The Marauder's map," Remus begins. "Is one of our creations. It's a magical map that tells the reader who is where in the castle." He informed us.

James came back down the stairs, holding a piece of folded parchment. "Here it is." He said, and then pointed his wand at it. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good." He told the map, tapping his wand at the center.

The map came to life, words springing up and saying something I didn't catch, because James opened it too fast.

"Find Mattie." He instructed. The map changed from one area to another, and came up with nothing. Instead, it went to the great hall, where all of the teachers were gathered.

"Maybe we should go and see what they're up to." Sirius suggested. "They could know something."

"Well, I suppose it's a good idea."

"Why don't we just let the teachers handle it? I mean if they have a lead…" Lily trailed off.

James scoffed. "They're not _that_ good. They have no chance of finding her. They're all practically idiots."

Lily was about to protest. But Remus spoke up first. "Come on then. James, you got the invisibility cloak?" James nodded.

"But I don't think we can _all_ fit under it. Maybe just four of us. Peter, you stay here – Pete?" He asked, looking around. "Has anyone seen Pete?"

We all shook our heads.

"Alright then, I guess we'll find him later." James said. "Anyway, I think we'll take you Azura, and go and have ourselves a little eaves drop, shall we?"

I nodded and Remus, Sirius, James and I set off along the corridors under the invisibility cloak, which James had miraculously pulled out of his pocket.

When we reached the great hall, we could hear the sound of argument.

"Albus, we can't seriously go after him! He's dangerous, and he could hurt the girl!"

"Of course we go after him! He could kill her, if he's that crazy!" Slughorn retorted at McGonagall.

"Quiet!" Dumbledore yelled. "I agree, we cannot go after the girl. However, we must do something. We can't leave her to this maniac. I shall get in touch with the ministry, and get someone from the transportation department, that can help us transport her away from him."

"Albus, where exactly has he taken Miss Blamey?" McGonagall asked.

"He's keeping Matilda and her mother at the old Zonko's warehouse." He told her. "Come now, everyone, we must get back to our students."

There were murmurs or agreement, and I looked to the three other boys, who looked to be scheming already. "We know where that is." Sirius informed me. "But it's a hard place to infiltrate." James and Remus agreed.

"We've got to try." I whisper back desperately. I'd do anything to get Mattie back. Even if she _did_ lie to us about her dad, I've grown close to her. I can't help it if I care.

They nod acceptingly, especially Remus, who seems to have developed a slight crush on her.

We head back to the common room and reveal ourselves to Lily and Alice.

"She's being _held_," I emphasized held, thus emphasizing the danger. "By her father at the old Zonko's warehouse. You know the one they shut down for a bigger one." I explained.

They nodded eagerly. "Where is it?" Alice asks.

At this, I look to Sirius, James and Remus.

It's Remus who explains. "It's just past Hogsmeade. About an hours walk from Hogwarts, but I'm sure we can fly."

Fly? FLY?! I can't FLY!

Of course you can, Azura, you're brave. Gryffindor, Gryffindor! My brain roars. You've got to save Mattie. So you can kill her.

Lily's eyes widen. "Oh god, I can't fly! James, I can't fly!" She says panicked.

"It's alright, Lily," James coaxes. "You can ride with me. I'm a great flyer." It's true, he is a great flyer, but for some reason, I think Lily's more scared of flying than I am, and it probably won't help.

"Fly? With you? Oh no, oh no. No way, James. I think I'd rather walk." She says.

Alice grins impishly at me. Oh no, what now. "It's okay, Lils, you can ride with _me_. I mean, I'm not quite as good as James, but I have the basics down pat, you know, getting off the ground… then again, my steering is a little off –"

"James!" Lily squeals, her eyes wide. "I'm riding with James." She says calmer.

"Okay, now that that's settled," Sirius says. "We can get going."

"Wait, one problem, who am I riding with? And how are we meant to get Mattie out of there?" I ask.

"Az, can you fly a broom?"

"Um, well, I… No." I squeak, giving everyone an apologetic look.

"That's alright, Az, You can ride with me or Alice." Sirius says. "As for Mattie, we'll work it out when we get there."

"We can't go yet." James says, nodding to the portrait. "Here come the authorities. We'll have to wait until nightfall."

"Alright, everyone, listen up." McGonagall calls everyone to attention. "You're allowed to leave the tower, _**but**_ no leaving the Hogwarts grounds. Understand?" There's a chorus of agreement. "As for class, it has been cancelled today. Have a good day." She briskly walks out of the common room.

James and Sirius look at Lily and I. "Time for you two to learn how to fly." They say in unison.

Lily and I look at each other with identical looks of terror on our faces. Uh-oh.


	16. The Rescue

**Hey everyone, I know it's been aggggges, but I had a bit of writer's block. But today, I was reading it and everything went DINGDINGDING! So here it is.**

**Chapter Sixteen**

Flying isn't that bad once you get used to it… Okay, I lied. It's terrifying.

My heart is beating overly fast as I hover in the air, trying not to move, in fear of falling off. Sirius is watching me, amused. Well, I think angrily. I'm _not_ amused.

He winks at me and I feel my face go red in anger. "This is _not_ simple!" I yell at him. "How do I get down? You know, to that thing I love, called the ground?" He laughs and flies over to me. We're on the quidditch pitch. Well, technically not _on_ the Quidditch pitch… more like 100 miles _above_ it.

I whimper. "Sirius!" I whine at him.

"C'mon Azura, stop being such a chicken. Just look at Lily." He points over to where my redheaded friend is whizzing around on her own broom, having loads of fun, with James right behind her. "You'll be fine. If you fall, I'll catch you."

Somehow, this doesn't comfort me. Not in the slightest. I wobble on my broom and grip it tightly. Okay, Azura Jane Lovegood, you can do this. Do it for Mattie. That way, when she gets back, you can show her and _then_ kill her. Well, maybe not kill her… just hug her until she's out of air and turning blue.

"C'mon Azura," Remus says, coming up beside me. "Gryffindor courage." He says before whizzing off through the air and leaving me to balance myself. Again.

Remus is right, though. Gryffindor courage. With that thought in mind, I find myself moving forward at a slow speed.

"That's it!" Sirius encourages.

I move faster and soon I'm heading toward the bleachers and I can't stop. "Sirius!" I scream. "Help me!" He's in front of me in an instant, steering my broom with his left hand as he rides along beside me.

He grins at me. "You've got the speed thing going; now all you need is the steering." He laughs and I find myself laughing too. Mostly at how silly I was being.

"How do I steer, then?" I stop my broom and I'm hovering again in mid air. He hovers next to me and corrects my hands on the broom.

"You just let your body flow in the direction you want the broom to fly. Use your body weight to guide it and your hands to keep you balanced when you lean. It's pretty simple."

Simple? That's what he said last time. Oh well, here goes my life.

I fly forward like I did before, only this time I lean to the left and to my surprise the broom follows! I pick up speed and turn in the air, the wind rushing against my skin. I stop abruptly and nearly topple off my broom as Sirius comes up behind me chuckling.

"Didn't know you had it in you, Lovegood." He teases.

I puff out my chest and hold my head high. "Of course I had it in me. Gryffindor, remember." With that, I poke my tongue out at him and speed off, Sirius on my tail.

"Glad to see you're doing well!" James yells to me as I go past him.

"Thanks!" I say, beaming. We speed around on our brooms for about an hour, when the clouds roll in and all sunlight is blocked out.

"Time to go in." Sirius announces. "It looks like it's going to rain."

We all groan. "Well at least now we can plan our rescue better." Remus reasons. We all agree and head into the common room to do some planning.

**AZURASIRIUSAZURASIRIUS**

We're standing outside and it's raining lightly as we advance past the Hogwarts boundaries, brooms in hand. A feeling of doom overtakes us all as we mount and take off, following James, Remus and Sirius.

For some reason I'm scared out of my wits about going to save Mattie. But it's not going to stop me. She's one of my best friends now, and I don't know what I'd do without her. You see, I'm completely determined.

We pick up a steady speed and fly over Hogsmeade swiftly, the rain pelting across our bodies. James looks back at Lily, mouthing the words "I love you" and I feel my own heart fill with emotion as Lily mouths it back. I smile at Lily, who's beaming, and our faces once more become determined as we come up on a large building.

The building, though quite old, looks like a well built fortress. "This is it." Sirius says as we land on the ground.

"Blimey." Alice says, looking up at it. "How're we meant to find her in _there_?"

"A simple detection spell should do." Lily says. "I might not be able to find Mattie directly, but I will be able to locate any human forms inside." She informs us. "But I'm afraid we might find the wrong person, so we'd best be careful not to just charge in before we know it's her and not her father."

Sirius squeezes my hand as Lily flicks her wand at the building, chanting some words that I don't catch due to the rain, which has suddenly started pelting down on our heads in a much heavier fashion.

Suddenly, we hear a blood-curdling scream rip through the building. We all jump and I see the colour drain from everyone's faces. My face is no exception.

"We've got to go in there." Remus whispers. "She could be…" he lets it trail off, afraid of finishing that sentence.

"C'mon." I say taking the first step toward the building. "Lily, where's that map?" Just as I say this, an image of the inside of the building appears; two red figures in a room not far from the entrance and another just leaving. It's as if we can see their body heat.

"This way." James says, taking us to the main entrance. The doors have been barricaded over with wood, but there's a small gap in the wall that's big enough for a person to fit through. We file through sideways and stand in the dark silently until someone pulls out their wand and whispers _lumos_.

We're in a completely clean room with a wooden floorboards and a door leading into another room on one side and a staircase on the other. According to the image we take the door and follow through tot another room with benches. This room leads to another room which lead to three more, before we come across a room that leads to a room with a light on. This door is sealed.

James looks at Lily, who sighs and points her wand at it. "_Vertigolas_." The door glowed a little and a slight popping noise was heard before it creaked open a tiny bit.

I pulled on the invisibility cloak and pushed it open enough to sneak through without being noticed. There was a fire going in the middle of the floor and to the side of it there were two figures lying on the ground; one breathing heavily and the other barely breathing at all.

I walk over to them quickly and kneel beside the one breathing heavily. I notice that she's a woman in her early forties with dark blonde hair and tanned skin, slightly wrinkled with time. She appears to be bleeding from the lip and nose, and one of her arms looks like it's twisted unnaturally.

Her eyes flutter open, sensing me.

"Mrs. Blamey?" I whisper. Her eyes pop open and she tries to sit up. I push her back down, soothing her. "I'm Azura, one of Mattie's friends. I'm here to rescue you. There are others here as well." I pull the cloak off myself and look into her hazel eyes. She nods and closes her eyes again, still having trouble with her breathing.

I crouch over to the other body and push aside the sandy-blonde hair and my heart wrenches. It's Mattie. Her skin is pale and she's barely breathing. Her skin is slightly chilled as I touch her forehead and there's blood oozing from her head and right leg.

"Mattie? Can you hear me? It's Azura." Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at me with hooded eyes.

"Az?" She asks, barely a whisper.

"Yeah, it's me." I gulp. "We're here to rescue you. I'm so sorry I didn't help you… it's all my fault." My words are hurried as I whisper them in her ear, stroking her hair as her eyes flutter closed again. "Mattie, I need you to stay awake. I'll be right back."

Her eyes open again. Only by a fraction and she tries to nod.

I pull the invisibility cloak on again and slip back through the door to find James, Lily, Remus and Sirius waiting.

I reveal myself. "Mattie's barely alive and her mum looks pretty wounded. We've got to get them out of there." I whisper even though they've put a silencing spell up on the room.

"Alright, so here's the plan…" James says, thoughtful. "I'll go in there with Lily under the cloak. When we get in there, I'll carry Mattie back here."

"Why am I going?" Lily asks.

"You need to pull the invisibility cloak over all three of us and you can help if I need it." He tells her. "Then, once we've got Mattie, we'll go back for her mum while everyone else gets Mattie out of there and to St. Mungo's. Lily should be able to heal some of the injuries on Mrs. Blamey, but Mattie needs a lot more help."

We all nod and He pulls the invisibility cloak over him and Lily and they slip through the door.


End file.
